RIO DE JANEIRO, March 31 (Xinhua) -- Brazil's unemployment rate rose to a record high of 13.2 percent in the quarter ending in February 2017, the country's statistics agency IBGE said Friday.
It is the highest unemployment rate since IBGE stopped calculating a monthly rate in favor of quarterly figures in 2012, up from 12.6 percent in the previous quarter.
According to IBGE, the unemployed population in Brazil reached 13.5 million people in February, also a record high figure.
Brazil is facing a dire economic situation, with a recession which has lasted two years, growing inflation and interest rates and diminishing credit.
The average monthly income of Brazilian workers remained stable at 2,068 reals (about 660.7 U.S. dollars) in the quarter ending in February 2017.
According to IBGE, only the salaries of public sector workers registered an advance compared to the previous quarter and with the same period in 2016, while the salaries of private sector workers remained stable in the period.
