Jobless down almost 10 per cent

The number of people registering as unemployed in May dropped by 686, or 9.7 per cent, to 6,366 compared to the same period last year, the National Statistics Office said.

There were 5,678 people registering as unemployed in Malta and 688 in Gozo. This means the jobless in Malta were down by 660 and by 26 in Gozo compared to May 2010.

The number of men on the unemployment register stood at 5,081, or 79.8 per cent, while women numbered 1,285, or 20.2 per cent. Compared to last year, unemployment decreased across all the age groups, the NSO said.

Most unemployed men were seeking occupations related to services, sales and crafts while women wanted clerical and service-oriented occupations. In January, the registered unemployment rate (excluding part-timers) stood at 4.4 per cent of the labour supply - 5.2 per cent for men and 2.8 per cent for women.

The registered unemployment rate among workers aged 45 and over was 4.6 per cent while those younger than 25 numbered 5.1 per cent, the NSO said.