Italy’s economy and employment showed mixed results in late 2024, with some areas stable and others slowing down.
According to the latest figures from Italy’s national statistics agency, Istat, Italy’s GDP growth remained flat in the fourth quarter of 2024 compared to the previous three months. However, it did show a slight improvement, rising by 0.5% compared to the same period in 2023.
Overall, Italy’s GDP grew by 0.5% in 2024, taking into account the number of working days in the year. In comparison, earlier government estimates in September had predicted a 1% growth rate for the year.
Unemployment and Employment
Unemployment figures showed a rise in December 2024, with the jobless rate climbing to 6.2%, up by 0.3 percentage points from November. However, there was some good news for younger workers, with unemployment among under-25s dropping slightly to 19.4%.
In terms of job numbers, there was little change in the overall number of people employed from November to December 2024. The total stood at 24.065 million, which is a 1.2% increase compared to the same month in 2023, adding 274,000 jobs. Although the overall employment rate fell slightly by 0.1 percentage points to 62.3%, there were differences across age groups and genders. Men and workers aged 35-49 saw increases in employment, while women and younger workers (aged 15-24) experienced a decline.
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The rate of inactivity, or people not working and not seeking work, dropped by 0.2 percentage points to 33.5%. This suggests a slight shift of people into either employment or looking for jobs.
Industrial Turnover
In industrial turnover, November 2024 saw a small rise of 1.5% in value compared to the previous month, with both domestic and foreign markets contributing to this increase. In contrast, turnover in services fell by 1.5% in November, showing some challenges in this sector.
Looking at the year-on-year data for November 2024, industrial turnover fell by 2.6% in value and 2.1% in volume compared to November 2023. The domestic market saw the biggest decline, with a drop of 2.7% in value and volume. In services, turnover also decreased by 0.7% in value and 1.0% in volume from the same month in the previous year.
Overall, Italy’s economic performance in late 2024 was a mix of stability and challenges. While GDP showed modest growth, unemployment increased, and some sectors, like industry and services, faced slowdowns.
