“Employment increases slightly despite activity which weakens” in the third quarter of 2023 in Occitanie, according to INSEE

Entre le deuxième et le troisième trimestre 2023, le secteur de la construction a perdu 500 emplois. MAXPPP – Vincent Isore

INSEE unveiled on Tuesday January 9 the figures for the regional economic situation recorded during the third quarter of 2023.

European growth "at the bottom of the wave", national growth "hesitant", inflationary tensions falling (+ 3.7% in December 2023, +2.5% estimated in June 2024), and an unemployment rate which would increase slightly in France (+ 7.6 % envisaged by mid-2024). In this national context, INSEE unveiled on Tuesday the figures for the regional economic situation recorded during the third quarter of 2023.

Modest increase in employment

Where it appears, as detailed by Hervé Le Grand, deputy regional director of INSEE Occitanie, that, in the region, "employment is increasing slightly despite activity which weakens", and after having stagnated in the previous quarter.

There is thus a gain of 3,900 additional jobs (3,200 in private employment, 700 in public employment), between the end of June 2023 and the end of September 2023. That is an increase moderate in salaried employment of 0.2%, more marked in the manufacture of transport equipment (+0.7%) than in the commercial tertiary sector (+0.3%).

Increase in salaried employment in Lozère

On the other hand, a further decline was recorded in temporary employment (60.8%) and in construction, a sector where a loss of 500 jobs was noted.

Significant changes are also to be observed, from one quarter to the next, with regard to the evolution of salaried employment by department, for which the ;rsquo;Insee indicates "a clear increase in Haute-Garonne and Lozère". It is also increasing in Aveyron and Hérault (+ 0.2% each). Over one year, between September 2022 and September 2023, Occitanie gained 23,100 employees (+1.1%).

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Slight rise in the unemployment rate

The unemployment rate rises slightly to 8.8% of the active population in Occitania in the third quarter of 2023 (*). It now varies between 4.8% in Lozère and 12.2% in the Pyrénées-Orientales.

The latter department still has the highest unemployment rate in mainland France, Aude fourth, Gard and Hérault joint fifth. "It remains a very important social problem" agrees Hervé Le Grand.

Confirmed slowdown in economic activity

Finally, according to INSEE, this third quarter of 2023 shows a further slowdown in economic activity, measured by the volume of paid hours.

It increases by 1.6% compared to the same quarter of 2022, after +2% in the second quarter of 2023 and +3.1% in the first quarter of 2023. Economic growth remains sustained in the ;industry (+2.3%), but fell by 1.4% in the agri-food industries.

Confirmed decline in business tourism

Activity in construction decreased by 1% following in particular the rise in material costs and the rise in interest rates. As for tourist attendance, it increased in campsites, but the confirmed decline in business tourism penalized hotels.

The unemployment rate may rise at the same time as employment rises, "because the labor force continues to grow a little faster than employment’ quot; was explained to INSEE on Tuesday. I subscribe to read more