The number of people on the live register in October fell by more than 5,000 to its lowest level in four years, the latest figures show.

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) released figures yesterday showing that the number of people signing on the register of unemployed fell 5,832 or 3.8 per cent to 149,644 in the year to October, 2005. This compares with a decrease of 7,131 or 4.4 per cent in the year to September, 2005.

The October figure was the lowest for four years, according to Robbie Kelleher, chief economist, Davy Stockbrokers. The seasonally adjusted figure showed an increase of 200 to 156,600 from September to October. The standard rate of unemployment in October was 4.4 per cent, the CSO said. This was the lowest rate of unemployment in the 25 EU countries, according to the union's statistics body, Eurostat.

This compares with 4.3 per cent in April 2005, a figure based on another set of statistics, the quarterly national household survey (QNHS).

The live register includes unemployed people and part-time and casual workers.

The CSO pointed out yesterday that it is not a measure of the number of people out of work.

The QNHS measures that figure. The last one found that between March and May, there were 88,900 people out of work, out of a workforce that is in the region of two million. Yesterday's live register figures show there were 19,838 casual and part-time workers signing on in October.

Of these, 7,544 were men and 12,294 were women. Bloxham Stockbrokers chief economist Alan McQuaid predicted yesterday that the overall number of jobs in the economy would grow by 75,000 this year.

"We are now looking for an overall rise of 75,000," Mr McQuaid said. "But that will be mainly concentrated in the construction and service sectors, with job losses forecast for both the manufacturing and agricultural sectors."

He said that the increase in employment would not have been possible without the increase in the State's labour force.