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While the national jobless rate slipped a bit in July, Maryland's rate edged up last month to 7.3 percent from a revised 7.2 percent in June, as the construction industry continued to shed jobs, state labor officials announced.

That number is still well below the U.S. rate of 9.4 percent in July. However, the jobless rates in neighboring Washington, D.C. and Virginia fell last month, to 10.6 percent (from 10.9 percent) and 6.9 percent (from 7.2 percent), respectively.

But not too much should be read into the slight increase in Maryland's unemployment rate, said Anirban Basu, chairman and CEO of Sage Policy Group, an economic and policy consulting group in Baltimore.

The Maryland rate "remains fully 2 percentage points below the national average," Basu said, pointing out that the nation actually lost jobs in July, despite the decrease in the jobless rate.

"Most economists agree that the national unemployment rate fell in July because many people stopped looking for work … which says many people have given up for now," he said. "That's a sign of an unhealthy labor market."

The new numbers show that the recovery hasn't arrived, said Thomas E. Perez, secretary of the state Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, in a statement.

"Maryland's labor market will continue to be affected by a series of ups and downs before economic equilibrium can be achieved and recovery begins," Perez said. "The governor and this administration will continue to find ways to support and assist Marylanders until a full recovery can be realized."

If the rise in last month's unemployment rate had a silver lining for the state, it was that the number of working Marylanders rose — just not as much as the number of job-seekers. It's the second time the number of employed residents has risen since the recession began about 18 months ago, according to state figures.

Industrial payrolls grew by a seasonally adjusted 10,000 jobs last month from June, with gains in both the public- and private-sector work forces. The state reported private-sector job growth in the health care, hospitality and food services industries. Health care and social assistance jobs have grown 2.6 percent to 319,000 since July 2008. The number of food service and hospitality jobs has risen 1.8 percent to 203,300 since July 2008.

"In Maryland, job-seekers may be more hopeful and persistent, so the data can be perceived as the opposite" of the national unemployment picture, Basu said. Last month's job growth in the state may be only seasonally related and "may not mean a true labor market recovery, but it's an indication that the labor market continues to perform better than the balance of the nation," he added.

But jobs in the construction, mining and natural resources industries continued to tumble last month. Those industries reported a total of 152,000 jobs in July, down from 153,800 in June and from 179,500 — a 15.3 percent plunge — from July 2008, according to the seasonally adjusted figures.

Maryland's construction and mining industries ranked 29th weakest in the nation with its year-over-year job loss, according to data compiled by the Associated General Contractors of America. In fact, the number of jobs in these industries rose in only two states over that period: Louisiana, with 3.6 percent growth; and North Dakota, with 2.8 percent growth. Arizona, squeezed hard by the collapse of the housing market, has lost 28 percent of its construction jobs in the past year and ranked last in the nation.

Maryland is "still in the bust that follows the boom," Basu said. Commercial building and real estate activity experienced a "significant rise" in the Greater Washington region during the mid-'00s, and now "we have been seeing the back-end of that boom as financing has dried up and demand for new construction has fallen."

"It's a long-term phenomenon, and will last through 2010 and beyond," he said.

The finance, insurance and real estate sectors saw a total 6.4 percent loss in jobs over the past year. Professional and business services took a smaller hit — 1.4 percent over the year — although administrative and support services jobs have fallen 5.3 percent since July 2008. Professional, scientific and technical services jobs stayed level at 228,800 last month, down only 0.9 percent from a year earlier.

Job growth has continued in the public sector in Maryland, particularly with the federal government. Last month, 132,200 Marylanders worked for the federal government, up from 131,000 in June and up 3.6 percent from July 2008. Job growth with state and local governments was smaller.

Maryland officials said they plan to release the county unemployment breakdown for July on Friday.