Unemployment in France falls to ten-year low
AFP/The Local France - [email protected]
Published: 16 May, 2019 CET.
Updated: Thu 16 May 2019 09:52 CET
French unemployment has fallen to its lowest level in 10 years, the national statistics agency said Thursday, providing a boost to under-fire President Emmanuel Macron.
The rate fell to 8.7 percent in the first quarter of the year, down by 0.1 percent from the same period in 2018, and the lowest level since 2009, INSEE said.
Macron, a pro-business centrist, has made cutting unemployment his main domestic priority and it has fallen gradually -- but unspectacularly -- since he took office in May 2017 when it stood at 9.4 percent.
France has suffered from chronic high unemployment for decades and the jobless rate is still far higher than in Germany and Britain, Europe's other two major economies.
Things nobody is talking about in France
Net creation of private-sector jobs:
Q3 2018 +31,000
Q4 2018 +54,000
Q1 2019 +66,000
Hiring intentions for 2019:
Permanent contracts (CDI) +24%
Temporary contracts (CDD) +8% pic.twitter.com/96W6DpHSCK
— Sophie Pedder (@PedderSophie) May 15, 2019
READ ALSO:
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All you need to know about the unemployment benefits you can claim in France
-
French economy gets boost as budget deficit sinks to 12-year low
Photo: AFP
British unemployment is at a 45-year low of 3.8 percent despite the economic turmoil created by Brexit.
Back in March, The Local reported that France's budget deficit had fallen to a 12-year low of 2.5 percent in 2018, a greater-than-expected decline achieved despite falling growth and purchasing power.
The deficit was lower than the government's forecast of 2.6 percent, and came as Insee revised upwards the shortfall between spending and revenue for 2017 to 2.8 percent of GDP, from a previous estimate of 2.6 percent.
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The rate fell to 8.7 percent in the first quarter of the year, down by 0.1 percent from the same period in 2018, and the lowest level since 2009, INSEE said.
Macron, a pro-business centrist, has made cutting unemployment his main domestic priority and it has fallen gradually -- but unspectacularly -- since he took office in May 2017 when it stood at 9.4 percent.
France has suffered from chronic high unemployment for decades and the jobless rate is still far higher than in Germany and Britain, Europe's other two major economies.
Things nobody is talking about in France
— Sophie Pedder (@PedderSophie) May 15, 2019
Net creation of private-sector jobs:
Q3 2018 +31,000
Q4 2018 +54,000
Q1 2019 +66,000
Hiring intentions for 2019:
Permanent contracts (CDI) +24%
Temporary contracts (CDD) +8% pic.twitter.com/96W6DpHSCK
READ ALSO:
- All you need to know about the unemployment benefits you can claim in France
- French economy gets boost as budget deficit sinks to 12-year low
Photo: AFP
British unemployment is at a 45-year low of 3.8 percent despite the economic turmoil created by Brexit.
Back in March, The Local reported that France's budget deficit had fallen to a 12-year low of 2.5 percent in 2018, a greater-than-expected decline achieved despite falling growth and purchasing power.
The deficit was lower than the government's forecast of 2.6 percent, and came as Insee revised upwards the shortfall between spending and revenue for 2017 to 2.8 percent of GDP, from a previous estimate of 2.6 percent.
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