Unemployment up marginally to 4.2% in October [Video]

The unemployment rate edged up to 4.2% in October from 4.1% in September, the Central Statistics Office (CSO) has said.

There were 121,200 people unemployed last month, up 1,200 from September and down 5,900 from October 2023.

Unemployment was measured at 4.1% among males, up from 4%, and 4.3% among females, unchanged from September.

The seasonally adjusted number of unemployed males rose to 62,500 in October 2024, compared with 61,000 in September 2024,” said Conor Delves, a statistician in the labour market analysis section of the CSO.

“The seasonally adjusted number of unemployed females in October 2024 fell to 58,700 from 58,900 in September 2024.”

The youth unemployment rate for people aged 15-24 increased from 10.4% to 10.6% while unemployment among people aged 25-74 was unchanged at 3.2%.

Andrew Webb, chief economist at Grant Thornton Ireland, said the figures continue to show labour market strength despite the slight uptick in unemployment.

“We could be forgiven for placing the …