Unemployment drops 13.9 per cent

The number of jobless people dropped 13.9 per cent, or 4,131, year-on-year in February, to 25,620, the statistical service (Cystat) said on Thursday.

Cystat said the decline was attributed to the sectors of trade (a decrease of 607), construction (603), public administration (434), accommodation and food service activities (396), manufacturing (325), financial and insurance activities (294) and to newcomers in the labour market (785).

Based on the seasonally adjusted data that show the trend of unemployment, the number of registered unemployed for February 2020 decreased to 19,740 persons in comparison to 19,978 the previous month.

The finance ministry welcomed the announcement noting “the data confirms the continuation of the government’s efforts for a drastic reduction in unemployment which is projected to further decline to 6 per cent in 2020.”

“Further improvement in our fellow citizens’ standard of living remain high among the government priorities,” the ministry added.