Italy’s unemployment rate eased in July, slipping to 6.0% from a downwardly revised 6.2% in June, according to data released on Monday by the national statistics agency ISTAT.

The improvement came alongside a net gain of around 13,000 jobs during the month, highlighting resilience in the labour market despite broader economic challenges.

The figure surprised analysts, as a Reuters poll had predicted the jobless rate would remain higher at 6.3%, a level initially estimated for June before the revision.

In addition, youth unemployment, covering job seekers aged 15 to 24, also showed notable progress, dropping to 18.7% in July from 20.1% a month earlier. This decline suggests that younger workers, often the most vulnerable group in the labour market, are beginning to find more opportunities.

Between May and July, employment in the eurozone’s third-largest economy rose by 51,000 people, equivalent to a 0.2% increase from the previous three-month period, according to ISTAT.

Compared with July of last year, the number of people in work was higher by 218,000, marking a 0.9% annual gain, Reuters news agency reports.

Italy’s sustained rise in employment has unfolded despite an environment of sluggish economic growth and flat wages.

Furthermore, according to a report by ISTAT issued last week, the country’s gross domestic product contracted by 0.1% in the second quarter compared with the previous three months.

The Italian economy expanded by only 0.7% in both of the past two years, and the government expects growth to slow further to 0.6% in the current year.

In July, the country’s employment rate, still among the lowest in the eurozone, ticked up slightly to 62.8% from 62.7%. At the same time, the so-called “inactivity rate,” which tracks people who are neither employed nor seeking work, inched higher to 33.2% from 33.0%.