Meloni 'encouraged' by jobs data

(ANSA) - ROME, DEC 2 - Premier Giorgia Meloni on Monday expressed satisfaction at Istat's jobs data for October showing a drop in the unemployment rate and a rise in the number of people in work.
    "We welcome the data for October released today by Istat, with employment rising and the unemployment rate falling," Meloni said via social media.
    "The data encourages us to continue working with determination to boost our efforts to strengthen employment, support families and businesses, and build a future of growth and stability for Italy".
    Italy's unemployment rate in Italy fell to 5.8% in October, down by 0.2 of a percentage point on the previous month, according to the provisional data released by Istat.
    The national statistics agency added that the jobless rate for under-25s who are active on the labour market dropped too, decreasing by 1.1 points to 17.7%.
    It said that, after falling in September, the number of people in employment in Italy went back up in October, rising by 47,000 to take the working population up to 24.092 million.
    Istat said the number of people hired on permanent contracts and the number of self-employed was up, while temporary workers were down.
    The agency said the number of people in employment was up by 363,000 compared to October 2023.
    It said the employment rate rose to 62.5% in October, up 0.1 of a percentage point.
    The inactivity rate rose by 0.1 of a point to 33.6%. (ANSA).