Italy jobless rate at record low of 5% in May, but 22,000 jobs lost
Overview of Italy's Employment and Unemployment Trends
ROME, July 2 (Reuters) - Italy's unemployment rate fell slightly to 5.0% in May but a net 22,000 jobs were lost during the month, with the fall in the jobless rate due to people no longer looking for work, national statistics bureau ISTAT reported on Thursday.
Unemployment Rate Details
• The unemployment rate was below a median forecast of 5.1% in a Reuters poll of eight analysts and was the lowest since ISTAT's current statistical series began in January 2004.
Youth Unemployment
• The youth unemployment rate, measuring job-seekers between 15 and 24 years old, fell in May to 15.1% from a downwardly revised 16.4% in April.
• Youth unemployment was also the lowest since January 2004.
Employment Figures and Trends
Monthly and Quarterly Employment Changes
• Despite the jobs lost in May, in the three months from March to May employment was still up 0.5% compared with the December-February period, with 119,000 more people in work.
• Employment was up by 228,000 in May compared with the same month last year, an increase of 0.9%.
Employment Rate and Economic Context
• Italy's employment rate, the lowest in the euro zone, slipped in May to 63.0% from 63.1% the month before.
• Employment has risen despite weak economic growth.
Government Growth Targets and GDP Performance
• Giorgia Meloni's government currently has growth targets of 0.6% for this year and for 2027.
• Italian gross domestic product rose 0.5% in 2025, a third straight year of sub-1% growth.
(Reporting By Gavin Jones, graphic by Stefano Bernabei)
