Turkey’s Unemployment Rate at 7.8% in August, Down from 8.1% in July
Key Facts
Turkey’s unemployment rate stood at 7.8% in August 2026, down from 8.1% in July, according to Investing.com’s historical release record. Data from the Turkish Statistical Institute showed that the number of unemployed people aged 15 and older fell by 106,000 during the month to 2.74 million. The August reading is the latest available figure in the evidence on Turkish unemployment, while no official figure is available there to confirm the rate attributed to September in the previous draft. The decline in the number of unemployed coincided with an increase in the labor force during the month. Measures of labor underutilization, however, moved in the opposite direction, presenting a more mixed picture than the unemployment reading alone.
The labor force grew by 29,000 from the previous month in August to 35.247 million, while the participation rate held steady at 52.5%, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute. The participation rate measures the share of the relevant population that is employed or looking for work, putting the number of unemployed in the context of the labor force. Despite the drop in the number of unemployed, the composite labor underutilization rate rose by 0.4 percentage points to 31.0%. This indicator covers a broader range than unemployment, combining different forms of underuse of labor. The improvement in the headline unemployment measure thus coincided with an increase in a broader gauge of labor-market pressure.
The improvement in youth unemployment was more pronounced than the reading for the market as a whole: the rate among people aged 15 to 24 fell by 1.1 percentage points from July to 13.0% in August, according to the institute. That rate remained above the overall unemployment rate of 7.8%, highlighting the gap between outcomes for younger people and the labor market overall. This reading adds to the picture of a decline in the number of unemployed, but does not offset the rise in the composite labor underutilization rate during the same month. The figures therefore show improvement in some employment indicators alongside a widening of a broader measure of labor underuse. The evidence did not include details on the sectors or factors behind these moves.
On prices, Turkey’s consumer price index rose 29.73% year over year and 1.84% month over month in September, according to Turkish Statistical Institute data. This places the labor-market figures in an economic context of continued price increases, without the evidence establishing a causal link between inflation and unemployment. The institute scheduled its next consumer price index statement for November 3, 2026. The September unemployment data release was scheduled for October 27, according to Investing.com’s calendar, which showed blank fields for actual and forecast readings when checked. Tracking September data therefore depends on the release of the published reading, while August data provide the comparison currently available.