UNEMPLOYMENT across the city region fell to its lowest level for six months as the local economy continues to show resilience despite the worst recession in decades.

Official figures released yesterday showed a second consecutive monthly fall across Liverpool city region, despite unemployment continuing to rise nationally.

Leading city economist Peter Stoney believes the data shows the Merseyside economy is in a relatively healthy state.

Mr Stoney, an honorary senior fellow at Liverpool University’s management school and director of the Liverpool Research Group in Macroeconomics, said: “We can say with more confidence that we are seeing a stabilisation and things should continue to get better. It’s beginning to look like it’s more meaningful.

“Things are looking pretty good and overall we should be quite pleased with the way things are shaping up.”

The Office for National Statistics showed there are now 56,401 claimants in the region, the lowest since May this year. The number of people claiming jobseekers’ allowance in Liverpool city region dropped by 641 people.

Five of the six local authorities saw falls, with only Knowsley recording a rise in claimants.

Nationally, the number of claimants rose by 12,900 in October to 1.64m, the 20th consecutive monthly increase, giving the worst total for 12 years.

Youth unemployment also continued to rise, with the number of 16 to 24-year-olds up by 15,000 to 943,000, giving a rate of 19.8%, a record high.

Wirral led the improvements, falling 2.8%, and St Helens’ claimant count dropped for the third consecutive month, down 2.6%.

The region’s unemployment rate is 6.2%, compared with 4.7% in the North West – boosted by low levels of unemployment across Cheshire and Cumbria – and 4.2% nationally.

But across the Liverpool city region the long-term trends remain positive. The momentum behind rising unemployment has slowed and then reversed in 2009.