Unemployment climbs to 17%

The unemployment rate climbed to 17% in May, according to data released Thursday by the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT).

May was the month when the lockdown imposed in late March to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic began to be gradually lifted. So, the unemployment figure is also a metric of how much the lockdown shrank overall economic activity.

May's unemployment rate was the highest in nine months. The rate among 15-24-year-olds was the highest in over a year, raising worries among officials.

There's a silver lining to this: Since the domestic job market depends heavily on seasonal tourism and, since preliminary data show that 50,000 new jobs were created in July, the rate is expected to drop.

The record creation of jobs is due to the inevitably late start in the tourist season and the fact that many of Greece's largest hotels...