DUBLIN: Ireland's unemployment rate, including those receiving temporary COVID-19 jobless benefit, surged to 25% in January after the government imposed a strict lockdown, up from a revised 19.4% in December, the state statistics agency said on Wednesday.

Restrictions, including the closure of shops and restaurants and a ban on travel and home visits, were dropped for most of December but reimposed late in that month following a surge in infections.

Excluding those on the emergency Pandemic Unemployment Payment, 5.8% of the workforce were registered as unemployed in January. The Central Statistics Office revised the official December unemployment rate to 5.8% from 7.2%.