The unemployment rate in Romania measured by ILO methodology, namely reflecting the population actively seeking employment as a share of the total working-age population, was 5.4% for the 15-74 years age group in October 2023, 0.3 percentage points (pp) down compared to October 2022.

For the 25-74 age group, the rate remained steady at 4.5%, and the decline in the overall ILO unemployment rate was driven by a lower jobless rate among the younger population: 21.1% in Q3, latest data available.

In absolute terms, the number of people actively seeking employment was 446,484 in October 2023, down from 460,571 a year earlier. 

Unemployment is expected to further decline gradually over the coming years.

From a broader perspective, the ILO unemployment increased slightly in absolute and seasonally-adjusted terms in the winter of 2022-2023, but it has stabilised around a moderate level (4.5% for the 25-74 age bracket) after the shock caused by the COVID-19 crisis in 2020.

The state forecasting body expects the ILO unemployment to decrease gradually: for the 15-74 age brackets to 5.4% in 2024 and 4.4% in 2027, from 5.5% on average in 2023 (5.6% in 2022). The number of people actively seeking employment would also decrease from 453,000 in 2023 to 445,000 in 2024 and 370,000 in 2027.

iulian@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Andrii Yalanskyi/Dreamstime.com)