Unemployment rate in Greece touched new record high in March as the economy, mired in its sixth year of recession, offered little respite to the country's harsh job market conditions.
The unemployment rate increased to a record high of 26.8 percent in March from a downwardly revised 26.7 percent in February, the Hellenic Statistical Authority said Thursday. The originally reported rate for February was 27 percent.
In March, the number of unemployed in the country totaled 1.31 million, an increase of 19.7 percent over the last year. Compared to February, this was 0.4 percent higher.
Employment, on the other hand, decreased 6.4 percent year-on-year to 3.58 million. This was 0.2 percent less than a month earlier.
The twice-bailed out euro member has undergone significant fiscal adjustments since 2010, resulting in severe recession and exceptionally high unemployment.
The economy contracted 5.3 percent year-on-year in the first quarter following a 5.7 percent drop registered in the fourth quarter of 2012, according to official data released last month.
The International Monetary Fund forecasts Greek economy to contract 4.2 percent in 2013. The economy shrank 6.4 percent in 2012.
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