JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – A state report says Missouri businesses saw a net growth of more than 8,700 private-sector employers in 2015.

The report from the Missouri Department of Economic Development says that’s a 5 percent gain over the previous year. The report was released last week.

The Jefferson City News Tribune reports (http://j.mp/2di1A05 ) that the report also says small businesses with 10 employees or fewer accounted for 77 percent of Missouri’s roughly 182,000 private-sector employers in 2015. Businesses with between one and 49 employees accounted for 95 percent.

The the report was produced by the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center using state unemployment insurance data, as well as the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, a cooperative program between the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the state labor market information centers.