Number of unemployed on rise again

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

Unemployment at 9.8 percent is nearing the April 2011 9.8 percent figure. Hürriyet photo

The unemployment rate in Turkey dropped 1.6 points in December 2011 compared to the same month a year earlier, from 11.4 percent to 9.8 percent, according to data provided yesterday by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK). However, when compared to November’s rate of 9.1 percent, it appears that joblessness is on the rise, and the unemployment rate is near the April 2011 level, when the unemployment rate was hovering at around 9.9 percent.

“In parallel with the moderation in growth, the improvement in the unemployment rate has come to a halt in December. In parallel with our GDP growth forecast of 3 percent for 2012, we expect the unemployment rate to remain broadly flat in the coming period,” read the TEB report to investors.

Urban jobless at 11.5 pct

Urban unemployment was at 11.5 percent, down two points from last year, and rural unemployment was 6.5 percent, down 0.7 points from the same period in 2010. The overall number of unemployed people decreased to roughly 2.5 million from 2.9 million, while the number of the employed rose to 23.6 million from 22.66 million.

The unemployment rate among youth dropped to 18.1 percent from 21.6 percent. The participation rate in the work force increased to 48.5 percent from 48.4 percent, as the employment rate was up to 43.8 percent from 42.8 percent.