Unemployment rose in May, for the second time in three months, according to the Live Register. On a seasonally adjusted basis, an additional 2,600 people signed on, bringing the total to 156,800. Dominic Coyle reports.
The figure is 11,100 down on the same month last year. The monthly figure had fallen by 4,600 in April but was partly influenced by the early timing of Easter this year.
On an unadjusted basis, there was a 793 fall in the register to 150,826.
In the first five months of 2005, the Live Register has averaged 155,800, according to Bloxham economist Alan McQuaid, a decline of 12,800 on the same period last year.
Even with the recent announcement of job losses in high profile firms like Waterford Wedgwood, Bank of Ireland and IBM, Mr McQuaid says the outlook remained favourable.
"All things considered, the labour market outlook for 2005 remains positive, with the Live Register forecasts to average 155,000, down from 166,000 in 2004, and the jobless rate set to fall to 4.2 per cent from 4.4 per cent in the previous year," he said.
Labour Party employment spokesman Brendan Howlin said the rise in the numbers signing on reflected "the recent round of redundancies announced in the banking and manufacturing sectors".
"These redundancies may not be fully reflected in today's figures but the country as a whole cannot continue to haemorrhage manufacturing jobs - a key factor in the economic success of recent times - at this rate," he said.
While he acknowledged that unemployment overall remained low, he said that most new jobs were being created in the "vulnerable" service sector, including tourism.
The Irish National Organisation of the Unemployed (INOU) described the monthly increase in the figures as "worrying".
While the national unemployment rate stands at 4.4 per cent, the INOU warned that the rate among those under 25 was above 10 per cent.
"Clearly, the current supports and social infrastructure to assist these young workers back into the labour market is insufficient and failing them," INOU policy officer June Tinsley said.
Davy economist Robbie Kelleher said that, despite the rise, there was no need to worry about unemployment in Ireland, unlike the rest of the euro zone.
"The Live Register rose by 1.7 per cent in May compared to April on a seasonally adjusted basis, but the underlying trend of unemployment claimants is still downwards," he said.
He noted that the numbers signing on were still 11 per cent lower than they were at the peak of the current cycle almost two years ago.
Ireland's unemployment rate of around 4.25 per cent was likely to be confirmed as the lowest in the European Union when figures are published next week, Davy said. The EU average remains around 8.9 per cent.
