THE QUESTION. Should we fear an explosion in the unemployment rate in France? While the health crisis rages in France, and all over the world, the question is as much a concern as it is a concern. As a reminder, in the 4th quarter of 2019, the unemployment rate reached 8.1%, according to figures from INSEE.
Read also: Coronavirus: is the economic crisis that is starting comparable to 1929, as Le Maire says?
But, due to the crisis, this period now seems far away. For 2020, the French government forecasts a contraction of gross domestic product (GDP) by 8%. On Thursday, INSEE announced that French GDP had dropped 5.8% in the first quarter. This is the largest decline in the history of quarterly GDP assessments started in 1949.
In addition, for several days, warning signals have been accumulating on the employment front. Monday, Pôle emploi announced a historic increase in the number of job seekers in March: there were 246,100 more unemployed category A workers over the month, an increase of 7.1%. This is the largest increase since 1996.
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