Czech unemployment falls in October

Czech unemployment fell for the first time in a year in October. The jobless rate dropped by 0.1 percentage point to 8.5 percent compared with September according to figures released by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. The total number of Czechs out of work ready to take up a job fell by just over 2,000 over the month, dropping below the half million mark. Some analysts warn that the decrease is mainly due to seasonal factors with the unemployment trend still upward and likely to reach 9.3 percent by the end of the year.