Rome, Jan 8 (IANS): Italy's unemployment rate fell to a record low of 5.7 per cent in November, the lowest level ever recorded since the historical series began in 2004, the national statistics institute ISTAT said.

The overall jobless rate declined by 0.1 per cent from October and by 1.8 per cent compared to November 2023.

The number of unemployed individuals fell by 24,000 to 1,457,000, which was the lowest since April 2007, reports Xinhua news agency.

However, the statistical report showed a different trend for younger workers, especially in the short term. Youth unemployment - measuring those aged 15 to 24 - rose to 19.2 per cent in November from 17.8 per cent in October, but marked a 2.7 per cent decrease year-on-year.

In the same month, across the European Union, the average unemployment rate stood at 5.9 per cent while the eurozone recorded a rate of 6.3 per cent, according to Eurostat.

Earlier in June last year, Employment in Italy hit 18.1 million, the highest level since 1977, according to provisional data released by ISTAT.

In Italy, the employment rate in June rose by 0.2 percentage points to 60.1 per cent against the previous month, marking "a record value since 1977," with 86,000 more people employed.

This group included "both genders and all age groups," except people aged 35-49, the institute said.

At the same time, the number of unemployed and inactive people in Italy in June decreased by 0.2 per cent, with this group especially concerning women and people aged over 25.

On an annual basis, the ISTAT reported that the number of employed people increased by 1.8 per cent (400,000 people) and the employment rate grew by 1.6 per cent as compared to June 2021.