The numbers signing on in the county soared by 1,200 last month.

Kent's jobless total in August stood at 18,667, up 1,207 on the previous month.

In Medway, the total shot up by 158 to 3,891 (2.4 per cent of the workforce). Unemployment in the rest of Kent rose by 1,049 to 14,776 (1.8 per cent).

There was gloom across the county, with all 12 districts hit. The main blackspots were Canterbury, Maidstone and Thanet, all recording three-digit rises.

Even prosperous West Kent saw a steep increase in claimant numbers, up 92 in Tonbridge and Malling, 60 in Sevenoaks and 76 in Tunbridge Wells. Gravesham and Dover posted the lowest increases, with 19 and 20 respectively.

But one leading expert said Kent was in a "very special position" to battle the negative trends.

Graham Galpin, the Chairman of the Invicta Chamber of Commerce, said Kent had a lot to offer in business terms.

Plus points included a huge government investment in parts of the county, and the high-speed rail link, which would be a huge bonus for the area.

~Listen: Hear Graham Galpin tell how the county is in a strong position to fight the credit crunch>>>

The official statistics underline the seriousness of the economic downturn, with several Kent-based employers announcing job cuts in recent weeks. Especially hard hit have been estate agents and conveyancing staff laid off because of the housing slump. Retailers have also felt the impact of the credit crunch.

Car dealership Dutton Forshaw in Maidstone said this week that up to 60 jobs will go with the break-up of the business. Other employers are known to be cutting staff numbers on a piecemeal, lower profile basis.

The same dismal picture was repeated across the UK, with the claimant count rising by 32,500 last month to 904,900. The quarterly unemployment rate went up by 81,000 to 1.72 million.

At the same time, the employers’ organisation the CBI forecast unemployment would smash through the two million mark next year.

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) predicted that the number of people out of work for a year or more would rise by 300,000 to around 700,000.

The CBI also predicted that the country would go into recession, which is defined as two months in a row of negative growth.

It blamed the sharper-than-expected slowdown over the first half of this year and the impact of weak consumer demand, high energy and commodity prices and the enduring effects of the credit crunch.

Director of CBI South East Malcolm Hyde said: "Over the past year our forecasts for economic growth have been shaved lower and lower as the UK economy continues to struggle with the twin impact of higher energy and commodity prices and the credit crunch. Growth in 2009 will be feeble at best.

"Having experienced a rapid loss of momentum in the economy over the first half of 2008, the UK may have entered a mild recession that will hopefully prove short lived. This is not a return to the 1990s, when job cuts and a slump in demand were far more prolonged."

How does your area compare?

Jobless figures for the county on August 14: Kent and Medway combined; 18,667 (up 1,207); Medway, 3,891 (up 158); Rest of Kent, 14,776 (up 1,049); Ashford, 964 (up 85); Canterbury, 1,314 (up 146);Dartford, 952 (up 69); Dover, 1,272 (up 20); Gravesham, 1,412 (up 19); Maidstone, 1,170 (up 131); Sevenoaks, 577 (up 60); Shepway, 1,484 (up 77); Swale, 1,686 (up 89); Thanet, 2,563 (up 185); Tonbridge and Malling, 761 (up 92); Tunbridge Wells, 621 (up 76).