The unemployment rate in Trinidad and Tobago has fallen.

The latest Labour Force Bulletin released by the Central Statistical Office (CSO) said earlier this week the unemployment rate decreased from 5.8 per cent in the second quarter, 2011 to 5.2 per cent in the third quarter, 2011, a decrease of 0.6 percentage points.

When compared to the third quarter 2010 the unemployment rate declined by 0.7 percentage points moving downwards from 5.9 per cent to its current level of 5.2 per cent, the CSO said.

The information contained in the latest bulletin is based on data collected in the continuous sample survey of population conducted between July-September 2011.

The labour force of Trinidad and Tobago, in the third quarter, 2011 registered 609,500 people, which represented a decrease of 11,300 people or 1.8 per cent when compared to the 620,800 people recorded in the labour force for the third quarter of 2010.

An examination of the data showed that in the third quarter, 2011 there were 364,200 men, which indicated a decrease of 1,800 or 0.5 per cent over the 366,000 men who participated in the labour force in the third quarter of 2010.

With regard to the number of women in the labour force, there were 245,300 such people, representing a decrease of 9,500 or 3.7 per cent from the 254,800 women who participated in the labour force in the corresponding quarter of 2010.

The data suggested that of the 11,300 people who exited the labour force during the period under review, 84.1 per cent were women, the CSO observed.

Employed people (persons with jobs) decreased by 3,900 or 0.7 per cent in the third quarter 2011, from a tally of 581,900 in the second quarter 2011 to 578,000.

The age cohort 40-44 was the largest contributor to this decline, with a decrease of 10,800 or 16 per cent where the second quarter 2011 figure was 67,400 and the third quarter 2011 total was 56,600, the CSO said.