Honolulu's unemployment rate of 5.8 percent in March was lower than many other U.S. metropolitan areas, new U.S. Department of Labor data shows.

Honolulu tied with Portsmouth, N.H., and State College, Penn., for having the 47th lowest rate of 372 cities surveyed by the department.

It reported 18 areas with jobless rates of at least 15 percent, while 15 areas registered rates below 5.0 percent.

The national unemployment rate in March was 9 percent, not seasonally adjusted, up from 5.2 percent a year earlier.

Honolulu's rate rose from 2.6 percent on a not-seasonally adjusted basis a year earlier. Hawai'i reported earlier this month that statewide unemployment was 7.1 percent in March, the highest in 31 years.