Unemployment drops back to 3.6%

The registered unemployment rate fell back to 3.6% in March, representing a total of 12,510 people unemployed, according to the latest figures from the Statistical Service.

If sustained, this marks a sharp turnaround from January and February, when unemployment breached 5% for the first time since the 1970s.

The biggest drop was in the category of restaurants and hotels, with unemployment falling by 1,762 compared with March 2004. A fall in unemployment in this category was no doubt influenced by the Easter tourism boom recorded in March.

There was also a fall in the number of new registrants compared with the same period of the previous year. These recorded 826 in March, compared with 880 in March and more than 1,000 in January and February.

Fiona Mullen