Jobless rate drops in Romania but youth unemployment reaches peak

The unemployment rate stood at 6.7% in the second quarter of 2014 in Romania, down from 7.2% registered in the previous quarter, according to recent data from the country’s Statistics Institute INS. The jobless rate for men was higher than for women – 7.4% compared to 5.9%. The INS data also reveal that the unemployment rate in urban areas (8.4%) was higher than in rural areas (4.7%). The unemployment rate reached its peak, namely 23.9%, among young people aged between 15 and 24. Employment rate for the group aged 15-64 was of 61.2% in the second quarter, higher than in the previous quarter, according to INS. Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com