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Portuguese unemployment rate reaches lowest since 1991

unemployment centreThe number of people registered this July at employment centres fell by 10.1% compared to July last year, and decreased by 0.3% since June, to a total 297,000 unemployed, according to data from the Institute of Employment and Vocational Training (IEFP).

Unemployment thus reached, according to the Ministry of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security, “the lowest since December 1991”, when there were 296,600 registered unemployed people.

This reduction in unemployment in July resulted in 33,297 fewer registered individuals than in July 2018 and 901 fewer unemployed registered than in June of this year.

According to the information released today, IEFP states that the decrease in the number of unemployed registered this year, compared to July last year, reflects a decrease in “all unemployed groups”, and highlights the contribution of men and adults over 25 years of age, enrolled in the employment centres for a year or more, those looking for a new job and those with a primary school qualification. In contributing to the data.

At the regional level, comparing July of this year with the same month last year, registered unemployment decreased in all regions of the country, with the largest decreases being in the regions of Lisbon and Tagus Valley (-11.9%), the autonomous region. of Azores (-11.1%), and the Northern region (-10.7%).

IEFP data released today also showed that unemployment fell in construction (-21.4%), insurance and financial activities (-14.1%) and in the manufacture of non-metallic mineral products (13.2%), with an overall decrease of 11.9% in the secondary/industrial sector.

Youth unemployment, which in June had fallen to 27.7 thousand people, with a year-on-year reduction of 12.2%, and an  8% drop compared to the same month the previous year (-2.4 thousand people), increased 2.9% in July this year, compared to June, with over 802 young unemployed enrolled. But compared to July 2018, under-25 unemployment fell 8.4%, with 2,617 fewer young people enrolled in a job centre.