Would the regional economy continue to demonstrate resilience? This is somewhat the observation of Philippe Renaudi, president of CCI Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, this Monday at the Economic Club alongside representatives of Pôle emploi, the regional director of Urssaf Franck Barbe and the deputy secretary general of the Paca Chamber of Trades, Jean-François Collombier.
Because the figures from the survey covering the period from January 1 to September 30, 2023 reveal the dynamism of the region’s businesses, with a cumulative turnover of 225 billion euros according to the general directorate of public finances. “This figure is down 5% over one year but only due to the decline of certain major players such as maritime transport, which are so heavy that it necessarily has an impact. By removing their share in regional turnover we is rather up 1%” underlines the president of the CCI.
Decline in hiring declarations
Excluding construction, the projection for the activity of regional industries is up almost 5% according to the Banque de France in the region. But it is above all the employment situation which reveals an improvement. The unemployment rate of 7.8% is the lowest that Pôle emploi has measured in more than 10 years. The drop in the number of category A job seekers is even greater in the South (6.5%) than at the national level. However, specifies Franck Barbe, “the decline in hiring declarations shows that the trend is turning”.
The number of pre-employment declarations (DPAE) is down 3.8% year-on-year with nearly 660,000 declarations at the end of September. Not all territories in the region are equal: if the Var and the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence are holding steady, in the Alpes-Maritimes the DPAE is down by 8%. The regional director of Urssaf, however, emphasizes that this is the 8th consecutive quarter of decline in the number of job seekers, and above all that companies are not reluctant to pay their charges. “It is especially SMEs that provide employment, particularly on permanent contracts.” believes Philippe Renaudi.