Unemployment rate drops to 3.9 pct in Q3, 2018

The national unemployment rate dropped to 3.9 percent in Q3, 2018, down 0.2 percentage points from the previous quarter, according to data released on Friday by the National Institute of Statistics (INS). 

By gender, the gap between the two unemployment rates was one percentage point (4.3 percent in male as compared to 3.3 percent in female unemployment rate), whereas by residence, the gap stood at 1.2 percentage points (4.5 percent in rural areas as opposed to 3.3 percent in urban areas). 

By age range, the highest unemployment rate is registered among the youth (15-24 age), of 16.4 percent. 

According to INS data, in Q3, 2018, the employment rate of the population in the age bracket 20-64 was 71.3 percent, exceeding by 1.3 percentage points the national target of 70 percent established in the context of the Europe 2020 strategy. 

The employment rate of the working age population (15-64 years) was 66.2 percent in Q3, 2018, up 0.7 percentage points as compared to the previous quarter, higher in men, 74.9 percent than in women, 57.3 percent and in the urban areas, 66.6 percent than in the rural areas, 65.7 percent. 

The youth employment rate (15-24 years) was 26 percent. 

Romania's active population amounted to 9.214 million people in Q3, 2018, of whom 8.857 million were employed and 357,000 unemployed.