November 19 (SeeNews) - Bulgaria's jobless rate rose to 8.23% at the end of October from 8.03% in September and 5.85% in October 2008, official data showed on Thursday.
The number of unemployed totalled 304,915 at the end of October, up by 7,400 from the end of September, the government's Employment Agency said in a statement.
Job vacancies totalled 20,847 at the end of October, 6,561 more than a month earlier. A total of 12,039 jobs were created in October, compared to 14,286 a month earlier. A total of 21,217 unemployed Bulgarians were hired in October, 7,322 more than a month earlier.
The government has said it plans to spend around 1.0 billion levs ($765.1 million/511.2 million euro) to fight rising unemployment. The country's jobless rate was 6.27% at the end of last year.
Bulgaria's unemployment rate is expected to reach 9.2%-9.3% by the end of the year, Labour Minister Totyu Mladenov said earlier in November. The jobless rate is expected to rise further to 11.4% next year.
Bulgaria, which joined the European Union in 2007, has a population of 7.6 million.