South Cyprus Unemployment Falls 9.6 per cent Year-on-Year in May

However, based on seasonally adjusted figures, which better reflect underlying trends by eliminating seasonal effects, registered unemployment for May dropped slightly to 9,708 persons, compared to 9,729 in April.

This marks a strong year-on-year decline of 781 persons, a drop of 9.6 per cent, when compared with May 2024. 

Cystat attributed this decrease primarily to lower unemployment in key sectors including financial and insurance activities, construction, education, and manufacturing.

A decline was also noted among newcomers to the labour market.

Sector-specific figures show that manufacturing recorded a reduction from 537 in May 2024 to 458 in May 2025.

Unemployment in construction dropped from 555 to 426 over the same period.

What is more, education saw a decrease from 373 to 263, while financial and insurance activities dropped from 574 to 405.

In contrast, slight increases were observed in sectors such as public administration, which rose from 600 to 658, and information and communication, which edged up from 392 to 416.

The number of unemployed newcomers also declined significantly, from 509 in May 2024 to 297 in May 2025.

Seasonally adjusted figures show a steady improvement in unemployment trends throughout 2025.

In January, registered unemployment stood at 13,147, with a seasonally adjusted total of 10,343. By May, the actual number had dropped by nearly 5,800 persons.

Source: Cyprus Mail