Brazil jobless rate hits record low despite high interest rates

SAO PAULO, Jan 30 (Reuters) -

Brazil's unemployment rate dropped to a record low ?in the three months through December, official ?data showed on Friday, despite borrowing ?costs at a near ?20-year high.

* The ?jobless rate hit 5.1% in the ?October-December period, statistics agency ?IBGE said on Friday, matching expectations from economists in a ?Reuters poll.

* It ?was ?down from 5.6% in the previous quarter.

* Brazil's central bank earlier this ?week noted that while some indicators have shown moderation signs, the labor market remains resilient, as it kept interest

rates

at 15%.

* Economists forecast ?the ?job market to remain strong in the short term but cool ?ahead, pressured by high borrowing costs.

* "Unemployment will likely remain near historical lows in early 2026... but slower growth, still-tight financial conditions and fading fiscal support will ?weigh on hiring," said Andres Abadia, chief Latin America economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics.

(Reporting by ?Isabel Teles; Editing by Gabriel Araujo)