UNEMPLOYMENT RATE STEADY AT 5.5% IN MAY

India’s headline unemployment rate was broadly stable on a year-on-year basis in May, falling marginally to 5.5% from 5.6% in May 2025, Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) data released by the National Statistics Office (NSO) on Monday showed.

- Sreedev Krishnakumar

Sequentially, however, the unemployment rate edged up from 5.2% in April.

Rural unemployment increased from 4.6% in April to 5.1% in May, while urban unemployment fell from 6.6% to 6.4%, its lowest level since May 2025. On a year-on-year basis, rural unemployment was unchanged, while urban unemployment fell by 50 basis points from 6.9% in May 2025. One basis point is one-hundredth of a percentage point.