LEWISTOWN - The September unemployment rates in Central Pennsylvania continue to climb, with the largest spikes in the Mifflin and Snyder county areas, according to data released by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.

In the Lewistown/Mifflin County area, seasonally adjusted unemployment rates jumped to 11.2 percent, up from 10.6 percent in August, according to the department.

Similarly, the number of unemployed in the Selinsgrove/Snyder County area increased from 8.8 percent in August to 9.5 in September, according to the department.

At 11.3 percent in September, Huntingdon was the only local area where unemployment numbers decreased, though the decline was small at two-tenths of a percent, according to the data.

Unemployment in Juniata County and State College/Centre County increased slightly to 8.5 percent and 6.1 percent, respectively, according to the data. State College continues to have the lowest unemployment rates in the state over 12 months, according to the department.

The Harrisburg area, which includes Perry, Dauphin and Cumberland counties, also increased by three-tenths of a percent to 7.9 percent, according to the data.

Pennsylvania's unemployment rate was up one-tenth of a percent to 8.8 percent in September. The state rate remained below the United States' unemployment rate, which rose one-tenth of a point to 9.8 percent, according to the department. Pennsylvania's rate was up 3.2 percentage points from September 2008, while the U.S. rate was up 3.6 percentage points in the 12-month period, according to the department.

Pennsylvania's seasonally adjusted total nonfarm jobs count dropped by 10,300 jobs in September, according to the department. The majority of the job losses were among service providing industries; however, the professional and business services sector added 2,700 jobs, according to the department.

Pennsylvania job count was down 198,100, or 3.4 percent, since September 2008, according to the department. Nationally, jobs were down 4.2 percent over the same time period, according to the department.