(RALEIGH) -- North Carolina’s May unemployment rate held steady  at 9.4 percent. The number of people unemployed decreased by 3,675 to 435,908.

“Over the past two years, North Carolina has gained 71,200 private sector jobs,” said N.C. Department of Commerce Deputy Secretary Dale Carroll.

Nonfarm employment decreased by 16,500 to 3,939,000 in May. The major industry with the largest over-the-month increase was Trade, Transportation & Utilities, which gained 1,900.