ROME, July 2 (Reuters) – Italy’s unemployment rate fell slightly to 5.0% in May but a net 22,000 jobs were lost during the month, with the fall in the jobless rate due to people no longer looking for work, national statistics bureau ISTAT reported on Thursday.
The unemployment rate was below a median forecast of 5.1% in a Reuters poll of eight analysts.
During the three months from March to May, employment was up 0.5% compared with the December-February period, equating to 119,000 more people in work, ISTAT said.
Italy’s employment rate, one of the lowest in the euro zone, slipped in May to 63.0% from 63.1% the month before.
The youth unemployment rate, measuring job-seekers between 15 and 24 years old, fell in May to 15.1% from a downwardly revised 16.4% in April.
The statistics bureau gave the following data:
MAY APRIL MARCH
JOBLESS RATE 5.0 5.1 5.2
YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT 15.1 16.4r 17.3r
RATE
EMPLOYMENT RATE 63.0 63.1 62.7
15-64
r=revised
(Reporting By Gavin Jones)
Comments