Raw Data: North Carolina's Unemployment Figures Paint a Bleak Economic Picture

President Obama said it would give North Carolina $159 million to fend off foreclosures, as part of government funding for counties in the U.S. where unemployment rate exceeded 12% in 2009.

A quick snap shot of North Carolina's unemployment figures show just how hard hit its economy is:

• February 2010: North Carolina unemployment hit record high 11.2% in February.

• Charlotte, North Carolina is facing its highest unemployment figures in at least 20 years. January 2010: Charlotte-area unemployment rose to 12.8%.

• North Carolina Employment Security Commission: 109,789 people are out of work.

• Charlotte's 12.8 % unemployment is up from 12.1% in December. Charlotte had a previous unemployment high of 12.5% last June, but some predict is could climb as high as 14 %.

• January: The Hickory metro area, which includes four surrounding counties outside of Charlotte, again had state's highest unemployment rate of 15.8%.

• Only nine states had unemployment problems that were worse than those in North Carolina.

• February's jobless rate is the highest since states started current calculation method in 1976. Florida, Nevada and Georgia also saw record jobless rates in February.

• February: North Carolina unemployment rolls rose by an extra 8,596 workers to 510,774. At the same time, 11,432 more workers were recorded as holding jobs or looking for work.

Sources : Associated Press, Triangle Business Journal, Charlotte Observer