According to the announcement from the Croatian Bureau of Statistics, the registered unemployment rate fell to 6.5 percent in March compared to 6.9 percent in February. This is in line with a modest growth in the active population (+0.3 percent compared to February) alongside a monthly decrease in registered unemployed persons at the Croatian Employment Service (-5.1 percent monthly). The active population numbered 1,709,778 persons at the end of March, while the number of registered unemployed amounted to 111,980 persons, as stated in the analysis by RBA analysts.
On an annual basis, compared to March of the previous year, the registered unemployment rate is lower by 0.9 percentage points. The decrease in the unemployment rate on an annual basis reflects the annual decline in the number of registered unemployed (-10.8 percent) alongside the growth in the active population (+0.3 percent). Compared to the same period in 2021, the registered unemployment rate is lower by 2.7 percentage points, while compared to the pre-crisis 2019, it is lower by 2.3 percentage points.
On the other hand, according to preliminary data from the Croatian Bureau of Statistics on employment trends, the total number of employed persons in March was 1,597,798, which is an increase of 1.2 percent compared to March 2022, but also a slight increase of 0.7 percent compared to February 2023. If we observe the trends in the number of employees in legal entities according to the National Classification of Activities, the number of employees increased by 1.2 percent on an annual basis, while compared to the previous month, a modest growth of 0.2 percent was achieved. In March, 1,386,640 persons were employed in legal entities.
The strongest annual growth rate was recorded in the category of Information and Communication (+12.6 percent), followed by Accommodation and Food Service Activities (+4.9 percent annually). The largest decrease was recorded in the category of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing (-2.3 percent annually), followed by Health and Social Care Activities (-1.5 percent).
In the first quarter of 2023, an average of 1,590,501 persons were employed, which is 0.9 percent more compared to the same period last year. Of this, 1,380,970 persons or 86.8 percent were employed in legal entities, 191,001 persons or 12 percent were employed in crafts and freelance professions, and 18,530 persons or 1.2 percent were agricultural insurance holders.
The unemployment rate at the end of the first quarter of 2023 remains close to record low levels, while the number of employed continues to grow at a modest pace. In the currently unfavorable economic environment, the resilience of the labor market somewhat prevents a noticeable slowdown in economic activities. The present trends are supported by the mismatch between supply and demand in the labor market alongside still strong demand for labor. This is confirmed by data on the movement of the OVI index (a monthly index of online job advertisements developed at the Institute of Economics in Zagreb in collaboration with the MojPosao portal), which recorded a growth of 5.3 percent in the first quarter of this year compared to the last quarter of 2022. Despite the inevitable economic slowdown, the labor market is expected to continue to record positive trends during 2023, albeit at a more modest intensity, conclude RBA analysts.
