ATHENS: Greece's jobless rate fell to 16.8pc in July from a downwardly revised 18pc reading in the previous month, data from the country's statistics service ELSTAT showed on Thursday.

Seasonally adjusted data showed the number of unemployed at 773,641 people, with those aged up to 24 bearing the brunt of being out of work.

Among younger persons aged 15 to 24, the jobless rate rose to 37.8pc from 34pc in the same month in 2019. Greece's jobless rate, which hit a record high of 27.8pc in September 2013, had been falling since but remains the highest in the euro zone.

Greece's 2020 budget projected growth picking up this year, helping to drive joblessness down to 15.6pc but a government-imposed lockdown to stem the spread of the coronavirus pandemic has thrown forecasts off.

The EU Commission estimates unemployment in Greece will rise to 19.9pc this year, projecting the economy will contract by 9.0pc.

The government, in its 2021 draft budget, projects the jobless rate will drop to 16.5pc next year from 18.6pc this year.