ATHENS: Greece's jobless rate dropped to 16.2pc in the third quarter from 16.7pc in the previous three-month period, data by the country's statistics service ELSTAT showed on Thursday.

About 63pc of Greece's 756,424 jobless are long-term unemployed, meaning they have been out of work for at least 12 months, the figures showed.

Greece's highest unemployment rate was recorded in the first quarter of 2014, when joblessness hit 27.8pc.

The data showed that women and young people in the 15-19 age group were most affected among the jobless.

The jobless rate for women was 20pc versus 13.1pc for men, while for people aged 15-19 it stood at 40pc.

Athens has already published monthly unemployment figures through September, which differ from quarterly data because they are based on different samples and are seasonally adjusted.

Quarterly figures are not seasonally adjusted.

September unemployment eased to 16.1pc though it remained among the highest in the euro zone.

Greece's economy contracted at an annual 11.7pc clip in the third quarter.