A decline in Honolulu’s unemployment rate to 5.3 percent in December from 5.7 percent in November helped the city gain ground in a ranking of metropolitan areas with the lowest jobless rates, according to a report released Wednesday.

Honolulu was tied with three other cities for the 37th-lowest unemployment rate in December out of 372 metropolitan areas surveyed by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

That was an improvement from 52st lowest in November.

Metro unemployment rates are not adjusted for seasonal changes, such as temporary hiring in the retail sector for the holiday shopping season.

Honolulu’s December rate compared with rates of 9.2 percent for Hawaii County, 8.3 percent for Kauai County and 7.3 percent for Maui County. The statewide unadjusted rate was 6.2 percent in December.

When adjusted for seasonal factors, the statewide rate was 6.6 percent.

Honolulu was in a group of about 60 cities with rates below 6 percent in December. Bismarck, N.D., had the nation’s lowest rate at 3.1 percent in December. The job market in North Dakota has been helped by a boom in its oil drilling industry.

El Centro, Calif., reported the nation’s highest rate at 26.8 percent, followed by Yuma, Ariz., at 23.1 percent. The cities are in adjacent counties with heavy farm economies and large contingents of migrant labor. California accounted for eight of the nation’s 10 highest rates in December, the bureau said.

Nationwide, employers added a net 103,000 jobs in September as national unemployment held steady at 9.1 percent for the third straight month. The gains were just enough to keep up with population growth. The economy needs to generate at least twice that total to reduce the unemployment rate.