EU joblessness drops to 9.1 percent
July 31, 2017
Unemployment in the eurozone fell to 9.1 percent in June, its lowest figure since February 2009, according to official data from Eurostat, the statistical office of the bloc.
The jobless rate in the 19-state single currency market was better than expected by financial analysts. The numbers came a week after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said the eurozone was strengthening, but warned of instability around Brexit and low inflation rates.
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Greece remained the EU country with the highest unemployment rate with 21.7 percent out of work, down 0.8 percent from May.
Meanwhile, the lowest rates were recorded in the Czech Republic at 2.9 percent, while Germany had the second-lowest jobless rate at 3.8 percent.
Spain, which has the second-highest rate of unemployment in the eurozone at 17.1 percent, saw the biggest fall - down from 2.8 percent from the previous year.
The number of people out of work in the European Union's 28 member states remained at 7.7 percent, the lowest figure since December 2008, according to Eurostat.
Europe's recovery post-Brexit remained stable with Eurostat estimating that the rate of inflation would stay at 1.3 percent, below the 2-percent target of the European Central Bank.
rd/hg (AFP, dpa)