Washington ? Americans are shunning long-distance moves at record levels as many young adults, struggling without jobs, opt to stay put rather than relocate to other parts of the U.S.

The new information from the Census Bureau highlights the extreme pressure that the sluggish economy is putting on people in this country, especially those in some of the hardest hit groups.

“It is truly a Great Depression for young adults,” said Andrew Sum, an economics professor and the director of the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University in Boston. “Young adults are working at lower rates than they ever worked before since World War II. As a result, you would expect migration to fall because they have nowhere to go to.”

The share of longer-distance moves across states fell to roughly 4.3 million people, or 1.4 percent, down from 1.6 percent in 2009. It was the lowest level since the government began tracking movers in 1948.

Among adults ages 25-29, about 3.2 percent moved to a new state last year, down from 3.7 percent. Moving rates for college graduates, who historically are more likely to relocate out of state, remained flat at a low of 2.1 percent.

Moves by those lacking a college degree dipped slightly.

The young adults staying put for now include Rodrigo Canido, 28, a graduate business student at American University in Washington, D.C. He recently earned a law degree at the school but opted to stay on a little longer to pursue a MBA after many of his classmates complained of difficulty finding jobs.

Originally from San Francisco, Canido says he hopes to return to California and is optimistic he can find something at least part-time until he can get a “dream job” as a lawyer. “It’s a lot of debt, but it’s been difficult for everyone in this job market. In the long run, I think having a business and law degree will be beneficial,” he said.

William H. Frey, a demographer at Brookings Institution who analyzed the data, noted that cities seeing relative gains were the handful that offered the promise of specialized tech jobs and hip lifestyles to more educated, young professionals.

“It is clear the weak economy continues to keep young people, especially college grads, locked down, unable to move to jobs, buy homes and start families,” he said. “Many are hunkering down at home, or in so-called ‘cool cities’ until both the job and housing markets improve.”

New York and Los Angeles were among larger cities seeing fewer losses as many younger people stayed put, according to 2007-2009 census data released Tuesday. Metro areas with diversified economies such as Austin, Texas; Raleigh, N.C.; and Portland, Ore., saw gains in college graduates relative to other cities.

Other metro areas seeing new gains or reduced migration losses among college graduates were San Francisco; San Diego; Boston-Cambridge, Mass.; and Washington, D.C.-Arlington, Va.