The latest monthly unemployment data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) has been released this morning.

It shows a seasonally-adjusted total out of work of 203,000 in October, down from a revised 204,900 (205,300) in September and 227,900 in October 2014. 
 
Male unemployment is 10.3% and female unemployment is 8.1%. Youth unemployment fell to 19.7% from 20.4% in September.
 
According to Merrion Stockbrokers, "While migration has played a factor in bringing the jobless rate down from its peak of over 15% during the financial crisis, there is more to it than just that, with clear evidence of a sharp rise in employment in the past couple of years. 

"Labour market conditions continue to strengthen. Consecutive gains in employment have been recorded over the ten quarters to the middle of this year, with some 130,000 additional jobs created since the low-point reached in mid-2012. Furthermore, employment growth remains broad-based, with increases seen in the majority of sectors monitored by the CSO."

They added, "With the Irish economy continuing to grow strongly in 2015, an average jobless rate of 9.6% is envisaged for this year down from 11.3% in 2014. We now think the figure at year-end based on these latest CSO numbers will be around the 9.2% level, and falling below the 9.0% mark in 2016."

Source: www.businessworld.ie