MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Major violent crimes decreased 5.1 percent in Memphis in the first three months of 2018 compared to the same period a year before, according to data released Tuesday.

Murders in the city were down 37.8 percent. Robberies were down 10.6 percent.

Shelby County as a whole showed similar, though smaller, decreases.

Major property crimes — burglaries, auto thefts and other felony thefts — increased 2.8 percent in Memphis and 4.5 percent countywide during the first quarter of 2018, an increase that was driven by auto thefts . But the burglary rate decreased 10.3 percent in Memphis and 7.9 percent countywide.

The figures were compiled by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and released by the University of Memphis Public Safety Institute and the Memphis Shelby Crime Commission.

“These violent crime statistics are encouraging, but they don’t signal that our work is done. Far from it,” Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said on Twitter.

Data released in January showed that Memphis’ murder rate dropped significantly in 2017 following a record-breaking 218 homicides in 2016, although the overall crime rate in Memphis in Shelby County had ticked up last year.