Chile Jobless Rate Climbs Above Expectations

Chile’s unemployment rate rose to 9.8% in the July–September 2026 quarter, up from 9.6% in the previous period and above market expectations of 9.5%. This marked the highest level since November 2021. The number of unemployed increased by 15.3% year-on-year to approximately 1 million, driven by both those who were laid off (14.4%) and those seeking employment for the first time (24.7%). Meanwhile, total employment fell by 1.1% to 9.27 million, pushing the employment rate down slightly to 55.5% from 55.6%. Job losses were concentrated in manufacturing (-8.1%), information and communications (-20.8%), and financial and insurance activities (-14.1%). Meanwhile, the labour force grew by 0.3%, and the participation rate edged up to 61.6% from 61.5%. By gender, unemployment remained higher among women at 10.5%, compared with 9.3% for men. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate stood at 9.6%.

Chile’s unemployment rate rose to 9.6% in the June-August 2026 quarter from 9.5% in the previous period and slightly above forecasts of 9.5%. The number of unemployed people increased 13% year-on-year, driven by a 12.1% rise in people who had previously held jobs and a 23.2% increase in first-time job seekers. Total employment declined 0.9%. By economic sector, employment fell most in manufacturing (-7.6%), information and communications (-16.8%) and commerce (-1.1%). The informal employment rate reached 26.3%. Among women, unemployment rose to 10.3%, up 1.0 percentage point, as the labor force increased 1.3%, outpacing the 0.2% rise in employment. Among men, unemployment reached 9.1%, up 1.1 percentage points, as the labor force declined 0.5%, less than the 1.7% drop in employment. In the Metropolitan Region, unemployment reached 9.8%. The seasonally adjusted national unemployment rate was 9.4%.

Chile’s unemployment rate rose to 9.5% in the May-July 2026 rolling quarter, slighly up from 9.4% in the previous period. The number of unemployed people increased 10.4%, driven by both those who had previously worked and first-time jobseekers. The participation and employment rates declined to 61.7% and 55.9%, respectively. Unemployment reached 10.3% among women, up 0.6 percentage points, and 8.9% among men, up 1 percentage point. The employment decline was driven by information and communications (-14.6%), education (-3.3%), and manufacturing (-2.7%). Meanwhile, the informal employment rate rose 0.5 percentage points to 26.5%.