Eurozone Unemployment at 11%

Unemployment in the eurozone was 11% in April, unchanged from March, but still the highest since records began in 1995.

Spain had the highest rate in the eurozone at 24.3%, while Austria had the lowest at 3.9%, according to the official figures from Eurostat.

A seasonally adjusted total of 17.4 million people were unemployed in the eurozone, up from 17.3 million.

In the 27-nation European Union, the jobless rate was 10.3%, up from 10.2%.

“Today’s grim unemployment figures provide a sober reminder that the eurozone economy is in desperate need of a more expansionary policy stance,” said Martin van Vliet, an economist at ING.

“The labour market recession in the eurozone continues to spread and deepen.”

The rate of unemployment in both France and Italy rose to 10.2%, from 10.1% in March.

But Germany bucked the trend, with the rate of unemployment dropping to 5.4% from 5.5% the previous month.

Source: BBC News