Europe

France jobless rate hits record high

New statistics show that unemployment rate in France hit a new record of 10.3 percent in the third quarter of 2012, the highest in almost 13 years.

According to AFP, the rate, up by 0.1 point, was released by France National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE) on Thursday. The institute said nearly three million people were unemployed in mainland France.
The INSEE also stated that the French youth have been hit hard as jobless rate among the people aged 15 to 24 edged up by 1.4 points to nearly 25 percent over the quarter.
In addition, unemployment rate among those over 50 rose by 0.1 percent to 6.9 during the period.
The institute added in the third quarter some 3.6 million people in mainland France sought jobs and about 3.1 million people were registered to receive unemployment benefits in October.
Since President Francois Hollande took office in May 2012, a further 230,000 people have registered as jobless.
France’s increasing trend of unemployment over the past five quarters is reportedly the highest since the third quarter of 1999, as the EU member state continues to struggle with a persisting recession.

Back to top button