Greek October unemployment eases to 11.6%, lowest since 2010

ATHENS (Reuters) – Greece’s jobless rate eased to 11.6% in October from an upwardly revised 12% in September, data from statistics service ELSTAT showed on Thursday.

The reading was the lowest recorded since March 2010 – at the start of Greece’s decade-long economic crisis – following the revision of last month’s figure. Unemployment had reached its peak in the summer of 2013, and has been falling steadily since.

Seasonally adjusted data showed 542,941 people were officially unemployed, with those under the age of 24 the hardest hit.

Unemployment was worse among women than men, with the rates at 15.6% and 8.4% respectively.

Greece’s economy is expected to grow by 1.8% next year, at a slower pace than initially expected, as soaring energy costs and higher inflation are seen hurting tourism and curbing domestic demand, the government’s 2023 final budget projected last month.

(Reporting by Karolina Tagaris; Editing by Alex Richardson)