With an unemployment rate of 14.1 percent, the urban areas of Himachal Pradesh had the highest unemployment rate in financial year 2023, followed by Andaman & Nicobar Islands. However, urban women had a higher unemployment rate than rural women in the country.

With an unemployment rate of 11.3 percent, the rural areas of Goa had the highest unemployment rate in financial year 2023, followed by Delhi. Overall, urban women had a higher unemployment rate than rural women in the country during the same period.

Unemployment Rate in India decreased to 8.20 percent in January from 8.30 percent in December of 2024. This dataset provides - India Unemployment Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

In 2023, the estimated youth unemployment rate in India was at 15.67 percent. According to the source, the data are ILO estimates. For the past decade, India’s youth unemployment rate has been hovering around the 22 percent mark. What is the youth unemployment rate?The youth unemployment rate refers to those in the workforce who are aged 15 to 24 years and without a job, but actively seeking one. Generally, youth unemployment rates are higher than the adult unemployment rates, and India is no exception: youth unemployment in India is significantly higher than the national unemployment rate. The Indian workforce, young and oldIndia’s unemployment rate in general is not remarkably high when compared to those of other countries. Both India’s unemployment rate and youth unemployment rate are below their global equivalents. In a comparison of the Asia-Pacific region countries, India ranks somewhere in the middle, with Cambodia’s unemployment rate being estimated to be below one percent, and Afghanistan’s the highest at 8.8 percent.

This dataset provides values for UNEMPLOYMENT RATE reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

The statistic shows the unemployment rate in India from 1999 to 2023. In 2023, the unemployment rate in India was estimated to be 4.17 percent. India's economy in comparison to other BRIC states India possesses one of the fastest-growing economies in the world and as a result, India is recognized as one of the G-20 major economies as well as a member of the BRIC countries, an association that is made up of rapidly growing economies. As well as India, three other countries, namely Brazil, Russia and China, are BRIC members. India’s manufacturing industry plays a large part in the development of its economy; however its services industry is the most significant economical factor. The majority of the population of India works in this sector. India’s notable economic boost can be attributed to significant gains over the past decade in regards to the efficiency of the production of goods as well as maintaining relatively low debt, particularly when compared to the total amount earned from goods and services produced throughout the years. When considering individual development as a country, India progressed significantly over the years. However, in comparison to the other emerging countries in the BRIC group, India’s progress was rather minimal. While China experienced the most apparent growth, India’s efficiency and productivity remained somewhat stagnant over the course of 3 or 4 years. India also reported a rather large trade deficit over the past decade, implying that its total imports exceeded its total amount of exports, essentially forcing the country to borrow money in order to finance the nation. Most economists consider trade deficits a negative factor, especially in the long run and for developing or emerging countries.

In 2022, 42.86 percent of the workforce in India were employed in agriculture, while the other half was almost evenly distributed among the two other sectors, industry and services. While the share of Indians working in agriculture is declining, it is still the main sector of employment. A BRIC powerhouseTogether with Brazil, Russia, and China, India makes up the four so-called BRIC countries. They are the four fastest-growing emerging countries dubbed BRIC, an acronym, by Jim O’Neill at Goldman Sachs. Being major economies themselves already, these four countries are said to be at a similar economic developmental stage -- on the verge of becoming industrialized countries -- and maybe even dominating the global economy. Together, they are already larger than the rest of the world when it comes to GDP and simple population figures. Among these four, India is ranked second across almost all key indicators, right behind China. Services on the riseWhile most of the Indian workforce is still employed in the agricultural sector, it is the services sector that generates most of the country’s GDP. In fact, when looking at GDP distribution across economic sectors, agriculture lags behind with a mere 15 percent contribution. Some of the leading services industries are telecommunications, software, textiles, and chemicals, and production only seems to increase – currently, the GDP in India is growing, as is employment.

The statistic shows the life expectancy at birth in India from 2012 to 2022. The average life expectancy at birth in India in 2022 was 67.74 years. Standard of living in India India is one of the so-called BRIC countries, an acronym which stands for Brazil, Russia, India and China, the four states considered the major emerging market countries. They are all in a similar advanced economic state and are expected to advance even further. India is also among the twenty leading countries with the largest gross domestic product / GDP, and the twenty countries with the largest proportion of global gross domestic product / GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity (PPP). Its unemployment rate has been stable over the past few years; India is also among the leading import and export countries worldwide. This alone should put India in a relatively comfortable position economically speaking, however, parts of the population of India are struggling with poverty and health problems. When looking at a comparison of the median age of the population in selected countries – i.e. one half of the population is older and the other half is younger –, it can be seen that the median age of the Indian population is about twenty years less than that of the Germans or Japanese. In fact, the median age in India is significantly lower than the median age of the population of the other emerging BRIC countries – Russia, China and Brazil. Additionally, the total population of India has been steadily increasing. Regarding life expectancy, India is neither among the countries with the highest, nor among those with the lowest life expectancy at birth. The majority of the Indian population is aged between 15 and 64 years, with only about 5 percent being older than 64.

The statistic shows the growth of the real gross domestic product (GDP) in India from 2019 to 2024, with projections up until 2029. GDP refers to the total market value of all goods and services that are produced within a country per year. It is an important indicator of the economic strength of a country. Real GDP is adjusted for price changes and is therefore regarded as a key indicator for economic growth. In 2024, India's real gross domestic product growth was at about 7.02 percent compared to the previous year. Gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate in India Recent years have witnessed a shift of economic power and attention to the strengthening economies of the BRIC countries: Brazil, Russia, India, and China. The growth rate of gross domestic product in the BRIC countries is overwhelmingly larger than in traditionally strong economies, such as the United States and Germany. While the United States can claim the title of the largest economy in the world by almost any measure, China nabs the second-largest share of global GDP, with India racing Japan for third-largest position. Despite the world-wide recession in 2008 and 2009, India still managed to record impressive GDP growth rates, especially when most of the world recorded negative growth in at least one of those years. Part of the reason for India’s success is the economic liberalization that started in 1991and encouraged trade subsequently ending some public monopolies. GDP growth has slowed in recent years, due in part to skyrocketing inflation. India’s workforce is expanding in the industry and services sectors, growing partially because of international outsourcing — a profitable venture for the Indian economy. The agriculture sector in India is still a global power, producing more wheat or tea than anyone in the world except for China. However, with the mechanization of a lot of processes and the rapidly growing population, India’s unemployment rate remains relatively high.

In the financial year 2021, a majority of Indian households fell under the aspirers category, earning between 125,000 and 500,000 Indian rupees a year. On the other hand, about three percent of households that same year, accounted for the rich, earning over 3 million rupees annually. The middle class more than doubled that year compared to 14 percent in financial year 2005.

Middle-class income group and the COVID-19 pandemic

During the COVID-19 pandemic specifically during the lockdown in March 2020, loss of incomes hit the entire household income spectrum. However, research showed the severest affected groups were the upper middle- and middle-class income brackets. In addition, unemployment rates were rampant nationwide that further lead to a dismally low GDP. Despite job recoveries over the last few months, improvement in incomes were insignificant.

Economic inequality

While India maybe one of the fastest growing economies in the world, it is also one of the most vulnerable and severely afflicted economies in terms of economic inequality. The vast discrepancy between the rich and poor has been prominent since the last three decades. The rich continue to grow richer at a faster pace while the impoverished struggle more than ever before to earn a minimum wage. The widening gaps in the economic structure affect women and children the most. This is a call for reinforcement in in the country’s social structure that emphasizes access to quality education and universal healthcare services.

The statistic shows the national debt in India from 2019 to 2022 in relation to gross domestic product (GDP), with projections up until 2029. In 2022, the national debt of India amounted to about 81.68 percent of the gross domestic product.

India’s economy on the rise

India is one of the most populous countries in the world, and although a large share of inhabitants are living below the poverty line – or probably due to this fact –, the country’s economy is growing steadily. India’s GDP growth is expected to remain steady at more than 7 percent for the next few years, which is almost double that of the global GDP, and both GDP and GDP per capita are expected to increase significantly.

Almost half of India’s workforce is employed in the agricultural sector, but services and industry share the other half quite equally. India’s GDP is mostly generated by the services sector, which includes transport, retailing, and offering services in the hospitality and tourism industry.

India’s trade balance has been in the red for a decade now, but seems to recover slowly. A trade deficit usually means that a country’s import costs are higher than the amount of money generated with exporting goods. India’s imports could not be compensated for by the country’s exports, as imports have been consistently, even if only slightly, higher over the years both in terms of volume and value.

Still, all signs point to India’s economy growing and thriving, reducing India’s debt (as seen above) and unemployment rate, enabling the inhabitants to create a better life for themselves.

In 2023, the unemployment rate in Nepal decreased by 0.2 percentage points (-1.83 percent) compared to 2022. The unemployment rate of a country or region refers to the share of the total workforce that is currently without work, but actively searching for employment. It does not include economically inactive persons, such as children, retirees, or the long-term unemployed.Find more key insights for the unemployment rate in countries like Afghanistan and Sri Lanka.

The statistic shows the distribution of the workforce across economic sectors in China from 2013 to 2023. In 2023, around 22.8 percent of the workforce were employed in the agricultural sector, 29.1 percent in the industrial sector and 48.1 percent in the service sector. This year, the share of agriculture increased for the first time in more than two decades, which highlights the difficult situation of the labor market due to the pandemic and economic downturn at the end of the year.

Distribution of the workforce in China

In 2012, China became the largest exporting country worldwide with an export value of about two trillion U.S. dollars. China’s economic system is largely based on growth and export, with the manufacturing sector being a crucial contributor to the country’s export competitiveness. Economic development was accompanied by a steady rise of labor costs, as well as a significant slowdown in labor force growth. These changes present a serious threat to the era of China as the world’s factory. The share of workforce in agriculture also steadily decreased in China until 2021, while the agricultural gross production value displayed continuous growth, amounting to approximately 7.8 trillion yuan in 2021.

Development of the service sector

Since 2011, the largest share of China’s labor force has been employed in the service sector. However, compared with developed countries, such as Japan or the United States, where 73 and 79 percent of the work force were active in services in 2021 respectively, the proportion of people working in the tertiary sector in China has been relatively low. The Chinese government aims to continue economic reform by moving from an emphasis on investment to consumption, among other measures. This might lead to a stronger service economy. Meanwhile, the size of the urban middle class in China is growing steadily. A growing number of affluent middle class consumers could promote consumption and help China move towards a balanced economy.

In 2023, just over 55.36 percent of Nepal’s gross domestic product (GDP) came from its service sector. Agriculture contributed the second largest amount, while eleven percent came from the industry sector. The majority of the Nepalese population lives in rural areas, and are depended on agriculture for their livelihood. A struggling but strong population Around 63 percent of Nepal’s 29.6 million inhabitants are part of the workforce, i.e. between 15 to 64 years old. Though the country has a very low unemployment rate (probably due to the fact that agricultural occupations are usually not taken into account when calculating national unemployment) , it is considered a country weighed down by high poverty, with a consistent trade deficit and a volatile inflation rate. However, recent perceptions of children’s living standards when they grow up in Nepal are overwhelmingly of the opinion that the standard of living is better. The Nepalese economy Nepal has robust ties with the country of India, which is both the country’s main export partner, as well as its main import partner . Nepal’s economy has been under the influence of political instability over the course of the country’s history: a monarchy until the early 2000s, it then became a republic with a Maoist-dominated government. Lately, Nepal made several attempts to improve its economic situation, but still relies heavily on remittances and foreign aid.

In 2023, services contributed around 58.42 percent to South Korea's gross domestic product (GDP), while 31.59 percent came from South Korea’s industry sector, and a little less than two percent of South Korea’s GDP was generated by the country’s agriculture sector. South Korea’s services sector employed over 70 percent of the South Koreans workforce in 2018 . South Korea’s workforce Much of the over 51 million inhabitants of South Korea are employed, and the unemployment rate is expected to remain under four percent through 2024. South Korea is experiencing the effects of an aging labor force, with a decrease in population share of people entering the work force, and a simultaneous increase of the number of those aged 65 years and above. Despite that, the country’s economy has remained a powerhouse, growing at around 2.5 percent from 2018 to 2019. The South Korean economy South Korea is known as an economic success story; it rose from one of the poorest countries before the 1960’s to a developed country with a high income level. Overall, South Korea’s total GDP was estimated to be approximately 1.7 trillion U.S. dollars in 2019, and is expected to continue to increase through 2024. South Korea is considered to be one of the core economies driving the next generation of economic growth, alongside the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India, and China).