L.A. unemployment stays at 5%

April's jobless rate was unchanged from the previous month and above the 4.8 percent rate in April 2006. California's rate jumped to 5.1 percent, while the U.S. was at 4.5 percent. The good other news is that L.A. County added 21,000 just 3,300 jobs in April, led by the leisure and hospitality segment (normal for this time of year as businesses gear up for the summer season). The category of "motion picture and sound recording" suffered a 5,700-job decline, which is pretty big. Of course, context is everything, and the real question behind all the numbers is whether the economy has entered a slump. By historic levels, a 5 percent jobless rate is really not bad for L.A., but it's been creeping upwards for several months, perhaps a reflection of the hit-and-miss housing market or runaway film production or lost manufacturing work. Or it could just be the business cycle that's showing its age after several pretty solid years.