The Turkish unemployment rate increased to 13.4 per cent in the third quarter (Q3) of 2009, according to the country's data agency.

The Turkish Statistics Institute (TSI) revealed that that the Eurasian country's jobless rate rose by 0.6 per cent in the July to September period from 12.8 per cent in the second quarter of 2009, Reuters reported.

Specifically, the TSI disclosed that youth unemployment remained particularly high in Q3 rising to 23.5 per cent from the previous quarter's figure of 19.7 per cent.

These increases could be attributed to the seasonal nature of employment in the Turkey's large agricultural sector, which witnesses declines in employment during the summer months.

In addition, the Turkish economy contracted by 13.8 per cent in the first quarter and seven per cent in the second quarter of 2009, which has led to domestic and international companies reducing their workforces.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecast earlier this year that Turkey's economy will shrink by 6.5 per cent in 2009, before returning to a growth of 3.7 per cent in 2010.