Northern Ireland unemployment figure falls to 35,100

The unemployment claimant count has now fallen by 29,600 since a peak in February 2013

The number of people claiming unemployment benefits in Northern Ireland fell by 800 in August to 35,100 according to the latest statistics.

The Labour Force Survey indicates that unemployment fell by 0.7% over the year to 5.6%.

This is the lowest unemployment rate in Northern Ireland since 2009.

The claimant count has now fallen by 29,600 since the most recent peak in February 2013.

Economy Minister Simon Hamilton said: "I am greatly encouraged by the continuing signs of improvement in economic conditions especially across our labour market.

"Creating more and better jobs is a key priority for me.

Latest figures

• The proportion of people aged 16 to 64 in work was down over the quarter

• NI's employment rate of 69.4% remains lower than overall UK rate (74.5%)

• NI's economic inactivity rate remained higher than in the UK (21.5%)

• Unemployment rate is 5.6% in Northern Ireland, compared to 4.9% in the UK

"The increase in employee jobs and the increase in the employment rate is hugely encouraging and a further sign that our economy is heading in the right direction."

Wednesday's unemployment figures were accompanied by other positive data on the Northern Ireland economy, said BBC News NI's business correspondent Julian O'Neill.

Figures on the service sector - the biggest part of the local economy - showed growth of 1.7% for the second quarter of 2016, he added.

Annual growth was 4% and there was increased output across all sub-sectors.

The index of production - which mainly measures manufacturing - also showed growth, but at a lower level, added our correspondent.

Output was up 0.6% on the quarter and 0.1% on the year. The food and engineering sectors shrink, while pharmaceuticals performed strongly.

The food and engineering sectors have shrunk, while pharmaceuticals performed strongly, he said.