Cyprus records EU’s largest annual drop in job vacancy rate
Cyprus’ job vacancy rate fell to 2.6 per cent in the second quarter of 2026, the largest year-on-year decline in the EU.
Nicosia, Cyprus. Cyprus recorded the European Union’s largest year-on-year decline in its job vacancy rate in the second quarter of 2026, with the proportion of unfilled posts falling to 2.6 per cent, according to Eurostat. The rate was down 0.7 percentage points from 3.3 per cent in the second quarter of 2025.
Quarterly decline
The job vacancy rate in Cyprus stood at 3.0 per cent in the third quarter of 2025, before falling to 2.8 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2025 and the first quarter of 2026.
It declined further to 2.6 per cent in the second quarter of 2026, Eurostat reported.
Comparison with EU averages
Despite the decline, Cyprus’ vacancy rate remained above the EU average of 2.0 per cent and the euro area average of 2.1 per cent.
The gap between Cyprus and the wider European market narrowed during the year. In the second quarter of 2025, Cyprus’ rate was 1.1 percentage points higher than the euro area rate and 1.2 percentage points above the EU rate.
By the second quarter of 2026, the differences had narrowed to 0.5 percentage points compared with the euro area and 0.6 percentage points compared with the EU.
EU and euro area figures
Across the euro area, the job vacancy rate fell to 2.1 per cent in the second quarter of 2026, from 2.3 per cent in the first quarter and 2.2 per cent a year earlier.
Across the EU, the rate declined to 2.0 per cent, from 2.1 per cent in both the first quarter of 2026 and the second quarter of 2025.
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