Unemployment

The unemployment rate for the month of December has decreased for the first time in Bulgaria since 1991.

The unemployment rate in December 2014 was 10.7 %, which represents a drop of 0.1 % compared to November 2014, Darik radio reports.

By Chryssa Liaggou

Political uncertainty and the fear of an electoral leap into the unknown resulted in a significant drop in economic sentiment in Greece last month, according to a monthly survey by the Foundation for Economic and Industrial Research (IOBE).

Greece's jobless rate fell to 25.8 percent in October from an upwardly revised 26 percent rate in September as the economy emerged from a six-year recession, Greek statistics agency ELSTAT said on Thursday.

October's reading was the lowest since August 2012 when unemployment stood at 25.5 percent. The record high was set in September 2013, when unemployment hit 28 percent.

The unemployment rate in Bulgaria has decreased over the past year, but remains above the average for the European Union (EU).

This becomes clear from the data on unemployment in November 2014, published by Eurostat on Wednesday.

The unemployment rate in Bulgaria has recorded a steady decrease from November 2013, when it stood at 12.9 %, reaching 11.1 % a year later.

By Stefan Riecher

The inflation rate in the euro area fell below zero for the first time in more than five years, bolstering the case for more European Central Bank stimulus.

Men outnumber women in workforce

BELGRADE -- Women account for 42 percent of employees in Serbia, which indicates that the number of men in the workforce is higher by 16 percent compared to women.

This data is contained in a Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia (RZS) study.

BELGRADE - Around 20,000 people may be left jobless in 2015 in the search for a solution to the fate of restructuring companies and the National Employment Service of Serbia (NSZ) is willing to include them in the active employment policy measures, NSZ Director Zoran Martinovic stated on Monday.

Unemployment fell to 25.5 percent in the third quarter of the year, against 26.6 percent in the second quarter of 2014 and 27.2 percent in the third quarter of 2013, according to seasonally unadjusted data published on Thursday by the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT).

Greece's jobless rate dropped to 25.5 percent in the third quarter compared with 26.6 percent in the previous three-month period, data from the country's statistics service showed on Thursday.

The rate was the lowest recorded since the third quarter of 2012, when joblessness stood at 24.9 percent.

The unemployment rate in Turkey is continuing to rise. The figure was 10.5 percent in September, the highest level since the global financial crisis. Worse, the unemployment rate is expected to increase in the near future, while it is also getting more difficult to take necessary measures against this rise.