And that decline of four-tenths of one per cent meant the number of people considered unemployed dropped by more than 800.
At the same time, Tom Austin from the Illinois Department of Employement Security says, the number of people employed here rose by 2,200.
"Most of the gains were found in manufacturing, education and health services, and leisure and hospitality. There were declines in industries such as professional and business services, retail trade, and the government sector."
He says the annual loss in January of some seasonal jobs, such as retail, was more than offset by large gains in manufacturing, and education and health services.
The unemployment rate decreased in all 14 metro areas in Illinois, including declines of 1.6 percentage points in Decatur (to 5.4 %), and 2.5 percentage points in Rockford (to 5.8 %).
