BULGARIA'S UNEMPLOYMENT RISES TO 9.78% IN JANUARY
Bulgaria's jobless rate grew to 9.78% in January, marking the third consecutive month of increase, National Employment Agency (NEA) data shows.
The number of Bulgarians registered with employment offices rose by 20,000 compared with the previous month to 362,447 people, the second biggest increase in unemployment in monthly terms since the start of the economic crisis.
Official job vacancies stood at nearly 9,000 at the end of January, up by 271 against the same period of 2010.
The largest number of job positions were offered in the processing industry, state government, trade, administration, education, agriculture, finance and insurance.
A total 20,000 unemployed Bulgarians were hired last month, more than double compared with January 2010, Dnevnik reported.
