Unemployment Rate Decreases to 15.2% in Q4 2025
According to the employment and unemployment indicators published on Sunday by the National Institute of Statistics (INS), the unemployment rate decreased to 15.2% in the fourth quarter of 2025, compared to 15.4% in the third quarter of the same year.
Key Statistics
- The number of unemployed individuals stood at 645.2 thousand, a decrease of 8.5 thousand compared to the third quarter of 2025 (653.7 thousand).
- The unemployment rate increased to 12.6% for men (compared to 12.1% in the third quarter of 2025) and decreased to 20.8% for women (compared to 22.4% in the third quarter of 2025).
- Among young people aged 15-24, the unemployment rate decreased in the fourth quarter of 2025, reaching 38.4% compared to 40.1% in the third quarter of 2025. This breaks down to 37% for men and 41.3% for women.
- For higher education graduates, the unemployment rate decreased to 22.5% in the fourth quarter of 2025 (compared to 24.9% in the third quarter of 2025). This rate is 11.7% for men and 30.5% for women.
Labor Market Trends
According to the INS, the active population decreased in the fourth quarter of 2025, standing at 4,255 thousand individuals compared to 4,259.3 thousand in the third quarter of 2025, a decrease of 4.3 thousand individuals. This population is divided into 2,931.5 thousand men and 1,323.5 thousand women, representing 68.9% and 31.1% of the total active population, respectively. However, the decrease in the active population in the fourth quarter of 2025 led to a decline in the activity rate of 0.2 points, standing at 45.9% of the working-age population (15 years and older), compared to 46.1% in the third quarter of 2025.
Employment Trends
The number of employed individuals increased by 4.2 thousand, standing at 3,609.8 thousand in the fourth quarter of 2025, compared to 3,605.6 thousand in the third quarter of the same year. This population is unevenly distributed between the two sexes: 2,561.8 thousand men and 1,048.1 thousand women, representing 71% and 29% of the employed active population, respectively. 53.3% of employed individuals work in the services sector, 18.9% in manufacturing industries, 12.9% in non-manufacturing industries, and 14.8% in agriculture and fishing.
