Hungary jobless rate falls to 6.7 pc in June-August

Budapest, September 29 (MTI) – The average unemployment rate in Hungary edged down to 6.7 percent in June-August, the Central Statistics Office (KSH) said on Tuesday.

The jobless rate for Hungarians between the ages of 15 and 74 was down from 6.8 percent in May-July and 7.7 percent in the same period a year earlier.

In absolute terms, the number of unemployed averaged 303,800 in June-August.

There were 2,984,400 economically inactive Hungarians — those neither employed nor seeking work — in the age group during the period, down from 3,111,000 a year earlier. At the same time, the activity rate rose to 60.4 percent from 58.9 percent.

K and H Bank chief analyst David Nemeth said the unemployment rate was likely to be below 7 percent in the rest of the year and he said it would average around 7 percent in the full year.

Erste analyst Vivien Barczel also forecast the average annual rate at around 7 percent. Although the rate could edge up a couple of tenths of a percentage point in the coming months, it would not reach 7 percent, she added.

Source: http://mtva.hu/hu/hungary-matters