Kazakhstan: Unemployment Rises Again

Unemployment is Kazakhstan rose in February to 7.1 percent, but a further 1.9 percent of the working population is on reduced hours or unpaid leave, the state statistics agency has revealed.
In January, the jobless figure stood at 6.9 percent, the news agency Kazakhstan Today reported March 16.

Early this month, Deputy Prime Minister Erbol Orynbaev announced a $930 million package to stem the tide of unemployment.

However, industrial output in the energy rich state has fallen by 12 percent since January, and more than 280 businesses have folded or been forced to reduce their operations since the beginning of the year.

The head of the Kazakh Confederation of Employers, Kadyr Baykenov, has warned that unemployment could hit 8.7 percent in 2009 and peak at 9.5 percent in 2010.

Kazakhstan's gross domestic product (GDP) grew by just 3.1 percent in 2008 compared to 8.5 percent in 2007 and 10.6 percent in 2006. With forecasts that the price of oil will remain near $40 per barrel this year, GDP is expected to slow further to around 2 percent.