Unemployment in Colombia rose to 14.2 percent in January, the country’s
statistics agency announced Friday.
The number of people without a job
rose 2.5 percent in the past year and more than one percent the last month.
The loss of jobs hits hardest in the cities; urban unemployment went from 12.3 percent in January 2008 to 14.9 the first month of this year.
The slowdown of the global economy earlier led to 3.5 percent decrease of Colombia’s industrial output in 2008, the sharpest fall since 1999 and retail sales dropped 9.2 percent in December compared to the same
month a year earlier.
In total, 2.8 million Colombians are now without a job.
Bucaramange and Bogotá are the cities with the lowest unemployment, while Ibagué, Manizales and Pasto remain the cities with the worst job opportunities.