CYPRUS: Unemployment records third fastest rate in EU

Unemployment in Cyprus has the third fastest rise in the EU after Greece and Spain, according to the EU Employment and Social Situation Review.
The review notes that unemployment in Cyprus has been on the rise since the start of the crisis, with the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate reaching 10.9 % in July 2012 (10.4 % for women and 11.4 % for men), up by 3.2 pps on July 2011, i.e. the third fastest rise recorded in the EU, after Greece and Spain.

The employment rate for those aged between 20 and 64 stood at 70.3 % in 2012 q1, down from 74.7 % in the same quarter the previous year.
Young people (aged under 25) continue to be hit the hardest by unemployment, with their rate standing at over 25 %. The Commission notes that it is noteworthy that the difference in unemployment rates between those with medium and those with low educational attainment is not as large as witnessed in the EU as a whole (0.8 pp compared to 8.4 pps for the EU in 2012 q1).

As a share of unemployed, long-term unemployment has now reached 24.5% (2012 q1), up from 17.3% in 2011 q1. This increase is largely affecting those aged between 15 and 49.
The proportion of the population at risk of poverty or social exclusion stood at 23.6% in 2010, just above the EU average and increasing during the crisis.

The share of the population living in a jobless household continues to increase, reaching 6.7% for adults in 2011 (compared to 5.9 % in 2010) and 5.8% for children (compared to 5.1%). The at-risk-of-poverty rate for those people employed has increased by 0.9 pp between 2008 and 2010 but remains below the EU average.
“The outlook for Cyprus remains bleak as the consumer confidence indicator continues to deteriorate, unemployment expectations are on the increase and expectations about the general economic situation are again worsening”, the review concludes.