The jobless rate in Switzerland rose from 2.4 to 2.5 per cent in October compared with the previous month.

The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (Seco) said on Friday that the number of registered unemployed increased by nearly 4,500 people to more than 100,000.

The head of the labour division of Seco, Serge Gaillard, said earlier this week that the figure could rise by 40,000 by the end of 2009, representing an unemployment level of 3.5 per cent.

Also on Friday, the Federal Statistics Office released a survey on the jobless in Switzerland using different criteria.

It found the rate had fallen by the end of the second quarter of 2008 from 3.6 to 3.4 per cent, compared with the same period the previous year.

According to the international definition, these people are jobless, are available to work and are actively seeking employment.

The survey also found that 275,000 people working part-time wish to work more. The total number of people affected by shortage of work (unemployed and under-employed persons combined) at the end of the second quarter represents 9.6 per cent of the economically active population.

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