Italy’s unemployment rate fell to its lowest level on record in November, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Thursday. Provisional data from national statistics agency Istat showed unemployment at 5.7%, down 0.1 percentage points on October.
The figure is the lowest since Italy’s current statistical series began in 2004. “The latest Istat data confirm an important signal,” Meloni said on social media. “Unemployment has fallen to the lowest levels ever recorded, and employment continues to grow on an annual basis.”
Youth unemployment also improved. Istat said the jobless rate for under-25s active in the labour market fell by 0.8 points to 18.8%. However, the inactivity rate rose by 0.2 points to 33.5%, the agency said.
Istat reported 24.188 million people in work in November 2025. This was 34,000 fewer than in October but 179,000 more than in November 2024.
The employment rate slipped by 0.1 points on the month to 62.6%. It remained 0.3 points higher than a year earlier.
Meloni said the results reflected the efforts of businesses, workers and professionals across the country.
She added that the government would continue supporting job creation, investment and productivity growth.
Deputy Labour Minister Maria Teresa Bellucci also welcomed the data. She said the figures confirmed the impact of government policies supporting businesses, stable employment and youth job schemes. Bellucci also pointed to a further fall in the spread between Italian and German 10-year bond yields. The spread dropped to 66 basis points, reinforcing market confidence in Italy’s economic stability, she said.
