WASHINGTON – Jobless rates rose in all the largest U.S. metropolitan areas for the fourth straight month in April, according to government data released Wednesday.

The Labor Department reported all 372 metropolitan areas tracked saw their jobless rates increase in April from a year earlier. Indiana’s Elkhart-Goshen’s rate jumped to 17.8 percent, up 12.7 percentage points from a year ago. The Indiana region, which posted the largest increase
from last year, has been pounded by layoffs in the recreational vehicle industry.

The second-highest jump occurred in Bend, Ore. Its rate rose to 15.6 percent, up 9 percentage points from last year. The region of North Carolina’s Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton saw its unemployment rate rise to
14.9 percent, a gain of 8.8 percentage points from last year

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