Turkey: Unemployment rate declined despite the record high participation rate

Turkey: Unemployment rate declined despite the record high participation rate

In October, unemployment rate remained unchanged at 9.1% while non-farm unemployment rate decreased 0.2pp to 11.4%. On a seasonally adjusted basis, unemployment rate decreased to 9.3% from 9.4% in September and non-farm unemployment rate declined 0.3pp to 11.7%. The unemployment rate declined in spite of the new record high participation rate which increased to 50.7% from 50.3% in September.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, non-farm employment increased 209k by our calculations. Wholesale and retail trade employment increased 254k whereas construction and agriculture employment remained broadly flat.

In line with the pick up in the economic activity, labour market conditions have improved in October. Despite the high level of participation rate to labour force, job creation was strong. The CBRT’s ongoing loose monetary policy stance and strong domestic demand will remain supportive of the labour market. Therefore, we expect unemployment rate to continue to decline gradually in the coming period.

Selim Çakır