KSH: Slight decrease in unemployment to 9.9%

In the three-month period, among 15- to 74-year-old males, 234,000 were unemployed, a 17,000 decrease y.o.y. for a mark of 9.7% unemployed. Among women, 206,000 were unemployed, a number essentially unchanged y.o.y. with a rate of 10.2%. 

Among 15- to 24-year-olds, 27.9% were unemployed, 1.2% improvement y.o.y.; this demographic represents approximately one-fifth of the total number of unemployed. The unemployment rate of 25- to 54-year-olds, those considered to be of prime working age, was measured at 8.8%, a 0.6% bump y.o.y.

Of those without work, 52.7% had been searching for a job for twelve months or longer, while the average duration of unemployment was 18.6 months.

KSH also reported National Labor Affairs Office (NMH) data showing the number of registered job-seekers to be 492,000, 6.6% fewer than in July 2012.

Upon reportage of the KSH figures, news service MTI quoted Takarékbank analyst Gergely Suppan and Erste Bank analyst Orsolya Nyeste as backing up an assessment from Portfolio.hu vis-à-vis the improvement in Hungary’s unemployment rate. Suppan cited fostered worker programs and employment abroad as buoying the figures; Nyeste also saw positive gain from the former, while adding that “the higher pension age and disincentives for early retirement had raised the activity rate.”