Unemployment virtually unchanged

In the period August-October 2005 an average of 458 thousand people in the Netherlands were unemployed. The seasonally corrected unemployment figure was 484 thousand, 3 thousand less than in the period July-September 2005.

Unemployment has been stable over a fairly long period. The seasonally adjusted unemployment figure during the first six months of 2005 was around 490 thousand. In the past three months the number of unemployed decreased by an average of several thousand a month.

The number of unemployed people in the period August-October 2005 averaged 458 thousand, just like in the period August-October 2004. For the first time since 2002 the year-on-year change is about zero. In each month over the last three years the unemployment level was higher than in the same month of the year before.

In the third quarter of 2005 an average 6.2 percent of the Dutch labour force was unemployed. This is the same as during August-October 2004. With 12.2 percent, unemployment was highest among people aged 15-24.

Unemployment, seasonally adjusted