Unemployment Rate Resumes Downward Trend to 6.3% in August

Latest figures from the Central Statistics Office show that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for August fell to 6.3% from 6.4% in July. This decrease in unemployment in August reversed the rare rise seen in July.

This time last year the jobless rate had stood at 7.9%. The CSO said the seasonally adjusted number of people who were unemployed stood at 139,100 last month.This was down from 140,800 in July and a decrease of 33,900 when compared to the same time last year. The country’s jobless rate compares with a current euro zone average of 9.1%.

There has been a strong growth in employment since the jobless rate peaked at 15.1% in 2012 when the country was in the middle of an international bailout.

The Finance Department has forecast that the unemployment rate will dip below 6% by the end of this year.
This means the economy could reach full employment next year with the rate forecast to remain at 5.5% from 2018 onwards.

The CSO figures also reveal that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in August was 7.1% for men, down from 9% the same time last year. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for women was 5.2%, a decrease from the rate of 6.5% in August 2016. But the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for persons aged between 15 and 24 years stood at 12.7% in August, up from 12.3% in July.