Employment and unemployment (provisional estimates) - August 2025

In August 2025 the number of employed people decreased, while unemployed and inactive people increased.

On a monthly basis, employment fell (-0.2%, -57 thousand) for men, women and those under the age of 50, while it rose among people aged 50+. Overall, the employment rate dropped to 62.6% (-0.2 p.p.).

In the last month, the increase in the number of unemployed people (+0.4 %, +7 thousand) affected men and people aged 25-49; unemployment decreased for other age groups and women. The unemployment rate stayed unchanged at 6.0%, while the youth rate rose to 19.3% (+0.6 p.p.).

In August, the number of inactive people increased (+0.5%, +60 thousand) for both sexes and for people aged 15-34; for those aged 35+ the number of inactive people dropped. The inactivity rate rose to 33.3% (+0.2 p.p.).

In the quarter June-August 2025, with respect to the previous one (March-May 2025), employment increased (+0.2%, +42 thousand).

On a quarterly basis, a drop was registered in the number of unemployed persons (-4.4%, -71 thousand) while the number of inactive people aged 15-64 years increased (+0.3%, +36 thousand).

Compared with August 2024, the number of employed persons increased by 0.4% (+103 thousand); the growth affected both sexes and those aged 50+, while employment decreased in the other age groups. Over the year, the employment rate showed a rise of 0.1 p.p.

On a yearly basis, the increase of employed people was accompanied by a fall in unemployed (-4.7%, -75 thousand) while the number of inactive people aged 15-64 remained substantially stable.