The number of people signing on the Live Register fell fractionally in January to register an annual unemployment rate of 4.5 per cent , according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
The seasonally adjusted total fell from 156,700 in December to 156,300 in January, a fall of 400. This compares to an increase of 300 in December.
The CSO said in the year to January, there was an unadjusted decrease 0.9 per cent or 1,387 compared to a decrease of 0.3 per cent or 444 in the year to December 2006.
The monthly fall in the Live Register figure consisted of a decrease of 300 females, the CSO said. It estimated the number of casual and part-time workers on the Register was 7,947 males and 12,496 females.