An 8,000 drop in the number of people unemployed in the region means the rate now stands at 9.5%.
Nationally unemployment fell by 63,000 between November and January to 2.33m, official figures showed today.
Youth and long-term unemployment both fell, with those out of work for over a year down by 38,000 to 828,000, while 912,000 people aged between 16 and 24 were jobless, down by 29,000.
The number of women on work in the north east is good as well: the number of women in work in the North East is at a record high of 566,000, which shows that the growing economy is helping people to find a job, turn their lives around and have the security of a regular wage.
