The unemployment rate in the euro zone stood at 6.5% of the active population in April, 0.1 points less than in March (revised figure to 6.6%), registering its lowest historical level, according to data released this Thursday by Eurostat.
The indicator is at its lowest level since the European Statistics Office began compiling this series in April 1998 for countries that have adopted the single currency. The March unemployment rate was initially announced at 6.5% before being revised.
For the European Union as a whole, the unemployment rate rose to 6% in April, stable for a month. The unemployment rate has fallen sharply across Europe since mid-2021 thanks to the strong post-Covid recovery that followed a historic recession.
Despite slow economic growth in late 2022 and early 2023, unemployment continued its slight decline in April, revealing a still strong labor market, despite the war in Ukraine and rising inflation.
7% in France, 2.9% in Germany
But hiring difficulties could lead to wage increases that are likely to fuel price increases, even as inflation continues to fall (slowing to 6.1% a year in May in the euro zone, according to a Eurostat estimate published on Thursday).
Some 13.03 million men and women were unemployed in April in the 27 EU Member States, including 11.09 million among the 20 countries that share the single currency.
Young people under the age of 25 continue to be particularly affected, with an unemployment rate of 13.8% in the EU as a whole and 13.9% in the euro area in April (compared to 14% in March in the EU as in the eurozone).
The unemployment rate remained stable in April in France, at 7% (same level as in March and February). The same stability in Germany, where it remained at 2.9%. Poland and the Czech Republic have the lowest unemployment rates in the EU at 2.7%.
The highest were registered in Spain (12.7%, 0.1 point less than in March) and Greece (11.2%, 0.1 point more).
Eurostat data is based on the International Labor Office (ILO) definition of unemployment. Unemployed persons are those who have been actively looking for work in the previous four weeks and are available to start work in the next two weeks.
Source: BFM TV
