Maryland’s economy gained 14,900 jobs in October and the state’s unemployment rate decreased from 5.9% to 5.7%, according to preliminary data released by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday morning.

The latest numbers mean that the state’s unemployment rate is at its lowest level since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic more than 20 months ago.

Maryland gained 1,200 jobs in September. The national unemployment rate is 4.6%.

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Maryland Retailers Association President Cailey Locklair said businesses are likely to face serious challenges in the near-term future.

“We are very concerned, and more startling is the fact that in 42 states including Maryland, there are more jobs than jobless people. With that type of job availability employees have more bargaining power than ever. Businesses are experiencing inflation the same way people are and the fact is it is going to get worse. The combination of high consumer demand, shipping congestion, workforce shortages, and higher costs is challenging everyone, but the longer jobs go infilled, the worse this gets.” There are 575,996 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Maryland as of Friday morning, according to the Department of Health, and 10,869 people in Maryland have died from the virus. The state’s positivity rate is 3.43%, which falls within CDC recommended guidelines for containment. Maryland has conducted more than 14.7 million COVID-19 tests.

Click here to read the full article from the Southern Maryland Chronicle.