Hungary jobless rate picks up to 7.2% yr/yr in June-Aug

The 7.0% jobless rate, first detected in April-June was the lowest figure rate in 2.5 years. A seven-year high in jobless rate was hit in December (2005)-February (2006) at 7.8%. The KSH said the number of unemployed was 304,600 and the number of employed totaled 3,944,700 in June-August. The latter figure compares with 3.949 million in May-July. The number of unemployed rose by 7,900 from the previous 3-months period and was down by 9,900 from the reading in the same period of 2006.

According to data provided by Eurostat, the statistics agency of the European Union, the harmonized jobless rate was 6.3% in the EU-15 and 6.6% in the EU-27 in July. The labor market activity of the population aged 15-74 was 55.1% in June-July, up 0.1 percentage points from the previous three-month period and down by 0.1ppt from the same period last year. The employment rate of the population aged 15-64 was 57.6% in the period examined, the same as in May-July, but down 0.2 percentage points from the same period in 2006.

The jobless rate for the 15-24 year old, representing 19% of all unemployed, was 18.3%, down 1.2 percentage points from the same period last year. The KSH said 48.7% of all unemployed have been seeking jobs for a year or more (vs. 50.8% in the previous 3 months). The average duration of joblessness came to 17.8 months, down from 18.8 months in the previous 3-months period. (portfolio.hu)