Italy’s Unemployment Rate Reaches Lowest Level Since 2007

Rome: Italy’s unemployment rate dropped to 5.9% in February, down from 6.2% in January, according to provisional data released by Istat on Tuesday. The national statistics agency reported that this figure marks the lowest level of unemployment since April 2007, when the jobless rate was recorded at 5.8%.

According to Ansa News Agency, Istat highlighted that the number of unemployed individuals in Italy decreased to 1.517 million, which is a reduction of 79,000 from January and 342,000 fewer than in February 2024. The agency also noted a significant decrease in the unemployment rate for individuals under the age of 25, who are actively participating in the labor market, showing a fall of 1.4 percentage points to 16.9% compared to January.

Istat also reported an increase in employment figures, with the number of people employed rising to 24.332 million in February. This marks an increase of 47,000 from January and 567,000 more than in February 2024. The employment rate climbed to 63.0%, a slight rise of 0.1 percentage points compared to the previous month.

Additionally, the agency observed a rise in the inactivity rate, which increased to 32.9% in February, up by 0.1 percentage points.