The number of people registered as unemployed in October stood at 6,596, compared to 7,594 in the same month last year, according to figures released by the National Statistics Office.

Education Minister Evarist Bartolo said this was the fourth lowest rate in the EU. Youth unemployment, comprising people aged between 16 and 24 years of age, stood at 12.2 per cent, he said.

Data provided by the Employment and Training Corporation indicate a decrease of 974 people registering under Part 1 (new job seekers who have left school, or re-entrants into the labour market, or job losers who have been made redundant by their former employers).

Decreases in registered unemployment were recorded among all age groups, with the most significant being recorded among registrants aged 30-44.

Compared to October last year, decreases were recorded in all categories of duration of registration, with the most significant among those who had been registering for employment for less than 21 weeks.

There are 8,508 new jobs on a full-time basis

The number of disabled people registering for work decreased by 47 to 458. Males accounted for 83.8 per cent of the total number of registrants with a disability. The largest share of men on the register sought occupations as crafts and related trade workers, whereas women mostly sought occupations as technicians and associate professionals.

The registered unemployment rate in June stood at four per cent of the labour supply, (excluding part-time employment) and varied from 4.7 per cent among men to 2.6 per cent among women.

Speaking at ETC yesterday, Mr Bartolo said there were 8,508 new jobs on a full-time basis and 5,354 on a part-time basis.

Excluding “temporary” transport workers, the number of civil servants employed between March last year and last June totalled 1,573, employed in the administrative sector, health and social work and education.

The number of people in the public service out of the total number of people in employment stood at 26.3 per cent in June, compared with 26.7 per cent registered in March 2013.