A unemployment rate in Brazil it fell to 5.6% in the quarter ended in September compared to the previous moving quarter, according to the Continuous National Household Sample Survey (PNAD), released by IBGE (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics) this Friday (31). The rate remains at the lowest level in the historical series, which began in 2012.
According to IBGE, the unemployment rate in the country fell in both comparisons: -0.2 percentage points (pp) compared to the previous moving quarter (5.8%) and -0.8 pp compared to the same period in 2024 (6.4%).
In the quarter, the unemployed population in the country was 6.045 million, the lowest number in the series, a drop of 11.8% compared to the same period in 2024 and 3.3% in the quarterly comparison.
At the other end, the population inserted in the labor market remained stable, at 102.4 million, still at a record level, while the occupancy level remained at 58.7%.
The number of employees with a formal contract renewed its record and reached 39.229 million.
Underutilization
The composite underutilization rate in Brazil fell to 13.9%, the lowest in the Continuous PNAD historical series. Those underemployed due to insufficient hours worked fell to 4.535 million, the lowest number since the quarter ended in April 2016.
The potential workforce fell to 5.2 million, the lowest number since the quarter ended in December 2015. During the pandemic, in the quarter from May to July 2020, this indicator had reached its peak, with 13.8 million people.
The discouraged population fell to 2.637 million, after reaching its highest value (5.829 million) in the quarter from January to March 2021.
