February 2 (SeeNews) - Labour demand in Croatia dropped 6.7% on the year in January, its sharpest decline in the last three years, a local think-tank said on Friday.
According to seasonally adjusted data, the Online Vacancy Index (OVI) measuring labour demand decreased in January by 2.4% compared to the previous month, which makes it the sixth month with a decrease in index value in the past year, the Institute of Economics Zagreb (EIZ) said in a monthly report.
“After OVI grew last year at a rate of 3.6% and its growth rate decreased from one quarter to the next, judging by seasonally adjusted data for January 2024, its growth on a quarterly level should slow down additionally in the first quarter of this year, although a more reliable assessment cannot be made before the data for February become available,” it added.
The most sought-after occupations in January were salesperson, cook, warehouse worker, bookkeeper, and waiter, same as a year ago. The sharpest drop among the most sought-after occupations over the year was recorded for programmers and telecommunications staff, while the biggest increase in demand was for economists.