Headline unemployment in the Irish economy remained at a near record low of 4 per cent in May, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO). This was unchanged from the rate recorded in April, and down from 4.2 per cent recorded in May last year.
Economists consider an unemployment rate of 4 per cent or less in the Irish labour market as tantamount to full employment.
The strength of labour markets in the face of higher interest rates and higher living costs has been one of the eye-catching features of the recent period.
The CSO said the seasonally adjusted number of people classified as being unemployed last month was 111,700, compared with 111,800 in April. This represented an annual decrease of 3,700. The seasonally adjusted number of men classified as unemployed was 56,600, while the equivalent for women was 55,100.
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The youth unemployment rate – for people aged 15-24 years – fell to 7.7 per cent, from a revised rate of 8.1 per cent in April.
“The economic mood is more upbeat heading into the second half of 2024,” said Andrew Webb, chief economist at Grant Thornton Ireland. “Forecasters are lifting their expectations for growth now that inflation appears to be under control. The latest statistics for the economy show that improvements in trade performance and consumer spending are contributing to growth again.”
Employment data from the US on Friday was similarly bullish with the US labour market gained 272,000 jobs in May, far more than forecast, but pushing back market expectations for the timing of Federal Reserve rate cuts.
The figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for non-farm payrolls last month compared with a prediction of a 180,000 rise in a Bloomberg poll of economists.
President Joe Biden, battling attacks on his economic record by Donald Trump in advance of this November’s US presidential election, hailed what he called “the great American comeback” in jobs. US employers have consistently kept hiring – often far exceeding expectations – despite a succession of interest rate increases that have taken borrowing costs to their highest for more than two decades.
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