Jobless rate in Turkey edges back towards 10-year low

Ralph Steinberger/Wikimedia Commons

• Uemployment falls to 8.7%
• Labour force stands at 35.5 million
• Youth unemployment dips

Turkey’s unemployment rate fell 0.3 percentage points month on month in February, to 8.7 percent, according to official data released on Monday.

The seasonally adjusted figure is edging back down towards the 8.6 percent recorded in October last year, the lowest for a decade. 

The unemployment rate for women was 11.3 percent in February, down from 11.6 percent in January. For men it was 7.3 percent, down from 7.6 percent.

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A year earlier total unemployment in the country stood at 10.7 percent. The figure was 12.9 percent for women and 8.5 percent for men

The data from the Turkish Statistical Institute showed the labour force participation rate remained unchanged in February at 54 percent. The figure for men stood at 71.7 percent; it was 36.6 percent for women. The seasonally adjusted measure of labour under-utilisation fell 1.9 percentage points to 24.5 percent.

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Youth unemployment in Turkey, covering those aged 15 to 24, dropped 0.8 percentage points to 15.6 percent. The figure for men was 13.4 percent. Unemployment was higher among young women, at 19.6 percent.

The labour force rose to 35.5 million, up 38,000 compared to the previous month.