French 2016 jobless total to fall more than thought: fund

[PARIS] France's jobless total should fall more than initially expected this year before picking up again in 2017, Unedic, the quasi-state fund that manages unemployment benefits said on Tuesday.

According to Unedic, the total number of jobseekers in its category A measure - those registered as looking for work and who have no employment at all - should fall by 124,000 in 2016, more than the 25,000 the fund expected in February.

However, the fund expects the number of unemployed to rise by 79,000 in 2017, while it expected a further drop of 26,000 in its previous estimate.

President Francois Hollande has staked his political future on bringing down unemployment, which has hovered near 10 per cent for most of his mandate. He has said he would not stand for re-election in 2017 if joblessness had not fallen by the end of 2016.

REUTERS