Homebase’s measure of Atlanta businesses open, based on whether at least one employee clocked in, fell 3.6% from August and was 13.2% below its January reference level. It is an activity indicator, not a count of closures; September declines are typical.
Metro Atlanta had 3,105,100 nonfarm payroll jobs in August, down 14,300 from a year earlier, BLS reported September 30. The 0.5% decline was not statistically significant, and the metro unemployment rate fell to 3.4% from 3.6%.
BLS releases August metro-area employment and unemployment estimates Wednesday, September 30. Until then, July is the latest official Atlanta benchmark, and Georgia's August statewide figures should not stand in for it.
