Despite growing concerns about the health of the economy, the rate of unemployment held steady in September, according to the figures released today.
Today's Live Register figures, which are interpreted as a monthly indicator of labour market trends, show the number of people claiming unemployment benefit fell by 2,400 in September. This leaves the unemployment rate unchanged at 4.3 per cent from August.
September's Live Register figures show the number of people signing on fell by 12,131 or 7 per cent in September to 161,432.
When seasonal factors are taken into account, the seasonally adjusted total fell from 165,300 in August to 162,900 in September.
The figures which are produced by the Central Statistics Office showed a monthly in all regions. The largest monthly decreases were in the Mid West (-8.7 per cent) and the Mid-East (-8.5 per cent); the lowest decreases were in Dublin (-5.3 per cent) and the South-East (-6.4 per cent).
The most recent Quarterly National Household Survey, which is regarded as the most reliable measure of unemployment, recorded a jobless rate of 4.2 per cent in the first quarter of 2002.