Texas was fifth in the nation for August non-farm job gains, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Employment in the Houston Metropolitan Area was up by 8,600 jobs in August compared with July and by 64,400 compared with August 2006. The unemployment rate was 4.1 percent, down from 4.6 percent in July and 5 percent in August 2006 according to Texas Workforce Commission September 2007 report.

In Texas as a whole the unemployment rate fell to 4.2 percent in August, down last month’s 4.4 percent, and down significantly from 4.9 percent a year ago. Employment in Texas remains strong, despite the U.S. economy’s loss of 4,000 jobs this month. Texas employers have added 229,000 jobs in the past year.

The job figures indicate relatively good economic health in Texas even as the national economy appears vulnerable to a slowdown.

“The state economy is still growing strongly,” said Fiona Sigalla, an economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. “We are growing much more strongly than the rest of the country, and should continue to do so.”

Texas economy is performing better than the country as a whole. And, according to statistics, Houston’s economy is doing better than Texas’ as a whole.