RALEIGH — North Carolina is a top 10 state for job creation in 2015, according to analysis of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics by Professor Lee McPheters at the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University.

Forbes Magazine on Thursday, reporting on the analysis, noted that North Carolina is among the states that have “offered job seekers far friendlier climates than the nation at large this year.”

According to Forbes: “The cities and states that make this list have experienced the strongest non-agricultural job growth over the first three quarters of 2015 …”

This isn’t the first time North Carolina’s recent success in job creation and economic growth has been recognized. Earlier this year, North Carolina was also named the “No. 2 Best State for Business and Careers” by Forbes, and the “Most Competitive State” in the country by Site Selection Magazine.

This latest ranking is yet another sign of how strong leadership by Gov. Pat McCrory and the Republican-led General Assembly is getting results, NCGOP Chairman Hasan Harnett said Friay.

“After being one of the states hardest hit by the economic downturn a few short years ago, North Carolina is now one of the top states for job creation and economic growth thanks to leadership from Gov. McCrory and the General Assembly,” said Harnett. “Because of billions in tax relief, better fiscal management and policies focused on growing the private sector, North Carolina is poised to grow to even greater heights in the future.”

As the John Locke Foundation’s John Hood recently noted, 2014 was the second-best year for job growth in North Carolina since the turn of the 21st century. Over the past year, North Carolina has been a top 10 state for per capita personal income growth as well, growing between 12 percent and 15 percent faster than the national and regional averages.