The Georgia Department of Labor announced today that Metro Atlanta’s unemployment rate declined to 6.5 percent in April, down three-tenths of a percentage point from 6.8 percent in March. The rate was 7.7 percent in April a year ago.

The rate declined because Metro Atlanta employers created 18,000 more jobs. The number of jobs increased to 2,444,300 in April from 2,426,300 in March. Most of the job gains came in leisure and hospitality, 6,300; professional and business services, 5,300; construction, 2,700; government, 1,300; education and health services, 600; financial services, 500; trade, transportation, and warehousing, 400; information services, 300; and other services such as repair and maintenance and personal and laundry services, 700. Over the past five years, the area has gained an average of 13,000 jobs from March to April.

Over the year, the number of jobs increased by 47,600, or 2.0 percent, from 2,396,700 jobs in April 2013. The big job gainers were professional and business services, 13,800; trade, transportation and warehousing, 12,200; leisure and hospitality, 9,300; construction, 8,100; education and health services, 4,100; and manufacturing, 1,500. Government lost 2,100 jobs.

There were 15,440 new claims for unemployment insurance filed in April, an increase of 1,458, or 10.4 percent, from 13,982 in March. Most of the increase in claims came in administrative and support services, 826; trade, transportation and warehousing, 268; and accommodations and food services, 111. There were 18,785 claims filed in April 2013.

Metro Athens had the lowest area jobless rate at 4.9 percent, while the Heart of Georgia-Altamaha region had the highest at 8.8 percent.

Meanwhile, Georgia’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for April was 7.0 percent, unchanged from March. The rate was 8.3 percent in April a year ago.