The figure was up on September's (7.5 percent) though lower than the 7.8 percent recorded for June and July.

By region, Ida-Viru County was hardest hit at 12.5 percent registered unemployed, with Valga (9.5 percent) and Pärnu (9 percent) counties next.

Harju and Tartu counties are the other two regions with the highest rates, while Hiiumaa, Jõgeva and Lääne counties reported the lowest rates of unemployment in October.

At the same time, the rate rose most steeply on the island of Hiiumaa where, while only 220 people were registered unemployed in October, this was a 94 percent rise on the 116 recorded in October 2019.

Hiiumaa has a population of a little under 9,000 people.

The rate of rise in Harju County (87.6 percent, to 22,500) and in Tallinn (86.7 percent, to 16,400) was only slightly higher than this.

On month, the largest increase, at 3.7 percent, was highest in Harju County, including Tallinn.

In an annual comparison, the number of registered unemployed in Harju County increased by 87.6 per cent and in Tallinn by 86.7 per cent. In other words, while in October last year there were almost 9,300 people registered as unemployed in Tallinn, this year the figures were 16,400 and 22,500 in Harju County, respectively.

Among younger people (aged 16-25), registered unemployment is highest in Tartu County, where the rate is 17.3 percent, followed by Järva County (16.3 percent) and Rapla County (14.9 percent).

Among the older demographic (over 55s) Hiiumaa boasts the highest rate at 31.9 percent, compared with 28.5 percent for Lääne County.

Unemployment runs at 47.7 percent among men and 52.3 percent among women.

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