In December, unemployment in Italy returned to growth by 0,1 percentage points, settling at 11,4%. This was communicated by Istat, specifying however that in the whole of 2015 the total number of unemployed fell by 8,1% (equal to -254 people looking for work). The jobless amounted to a total of 2 million and 898 thousand. Inactivity also dropped slightly (-0,1%, equal to -15 thousand inactive people), while employment increased (+0,5%, equal to +109 thousand employed people). Youth unemployment fell by 3,3% in one year.
After the drop recorded in the previous months (-1,0 percentage points between June and November), the unemployment rate rose by 0,1 percentage points in the last month, but, Istat technicians explain, due to rounding the rate of unemployment remains stable at 11,4%, as in November, and remains at the levels of December 2012.
On a trend level, the number of unemployed in December fell by 8,1%, equal to 254 fewer people looking for work. The youth unemployment rate was 37,9%, down 0,1 percentage points from November (to 38% revised from 38,1%).
Also this morning, Eurostat announced that in December the unemployment rate in the euro area fell to 10,4% from 10,5% in November (in December 2014 it was 11,4%). This is the lowest level reached since September 2011.
In the EU, the rate stood at 9% in December, stable compared to November (against 9,9% in December 2014). For the EU, the December figure is the lowest since June 2009. In Italy, also according to Eurostat, unemployment remained stable at 11,4%.
