The unemployment rate in January fell to 6.1 per cent, a slight decrease on the 6.2 per cent recorded in December, and a more significant decrease from the 7.4 per cent reported in January 2017.
According to the latest data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO), the seasonally adjusted number of persons unemployed was 143,700 this month, a decrease from 146,700 in December, and a decrease of 28,600 when compared to January 2017.
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for January 2018 was 6.5 per cent for males, down from 6.6 per cent in December 2017, and down from 7.5 per cent in the same month last year.
While the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for females this month was 5.6 per cent, a decrease of 5.8 per cent from last month, and a decrease from 7.3 per cent in January 2017.
The unemployment rate for youth’s remains in double-digits, with 13.7 per cent of persons aged between 15 and 24 years of age unemployed. However, this has decreased slightly from 13.8 per cent in December.
Earlier this month the Central Bank said that it predicted an extra 89,000 people will be in work by the end of next year. This would bring the total number with a job to around 2.3 million – well ahead of the previous peak of 2.24 million seen in 2007 at the end of the Celtic Tiger years.