County unemployment rate drops to 4.2 percent

San Diego County's unemployment rate was 4.2 percent in February, down from a revised 4.5 percent in January, according to the state's Employment Development Department.

The county did much better than the state (5.2 percent) and the nation (4.9 percent) during the period.

Non-farm jobs rose by 6600 during February. Professional and business services jobs rose by 3300 — the biggest portion of the gain. Government added 4200 jobs.