Joblessness among young Turks surges

ISTANBUL

Unemployment among the young Turkish population has surged by 2.1 percent year-on-year in the February period while the overall rate showed weak recovery. DAILY NEWS photo

Turkey’s youth unemployment showed a 2.1 percent increase, a considerable hike in the February period from the same month a year earlier, according to figures revealed by state-run statistics body TÜİK yesterday. 

During the period at issue, the percentage of unemployed people among the 15-24 age group has jumped to 20.4 percent. 

The rise in youth unemployment came amid the slight recovery of overall unemployment thanks to weak improvement in economic activity in Turkey. 

Despite the unemployment rate rising only by 0.1 percentage point from the same period last year to become 10.5 percent, it retreated 0.1 point from the January period.

The Turkish Statistical Institute announces unemployment rates each month for three-month periods. So the data revealed yesterday comprises January, February and March.

Weak recovery ‘proved’

“The data confirms that economic activity was weak in the first quarter. The recovery is too weak. Employment will slowly improve in the second quarter,” Oyak Investment chief economist Mehmet Besimoğlu told Reuters.

TÜİK data showed that the number of unemployed people rose by 163,000 people to become 2.88 million.

Meanwhile, Odeabank, the Turkish arm of Lebanese Bank Audi, has unveiled a report on Turkey’s unemployment, in which it said Turkey’s labor force participation rate in the February period has reached a record high at 51 percent. The bank said unregistered employment fell in the same period as well.

The TÜİK data showed employment rate increased from 42.9 percent to 44.4 percent with 1.5 
percentage point increase compared to the same period of the previous year.

“We predict the 2013 unemployment rate will recede to 8.6 from the 9.2 percent of last year with the impact of the recovery of domestic demand and continuing structural rehabilitation,” it said.

Of those who were employed in February, 22.5 percent were employed in agriculture, 19.9 percent were employed in industry, 6.2 percent were employed in construction and 51.3 percent were employed in services. Employment in construction increased by 0.6 percentage points and services increased by 0.2 percentage points while that of agriculture decreased by 0.8 percentage points and industry decreased by 0.2 percentage points.