Euro Area: Unemployment rate dips in January
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate came in at 6.4% in January, down from 6.5% in December.
As for the Eurozone’s largest economies, the unemployment rate fell in France and Spain while it remained unchanged in Germany, Italy and the Netherlands. Significant disparities in labor market conditions between core and periphery countries persist: Spain is the economy with the highest unemployment rate of 11.6%, followed at some distance by Greece (10.4%). At the other end of the spectrum, Malta (2.6%) and Germany (3.1%) have the lowest unemployment rates.
Commenting on the outlook, ING’s Bert Colijan stated:
“It’s remarkable that the labour market continues to run so hot despite the economy showing persistent weakness since late 2022. The stagnant economy while jobs continue to be added marks a worrying productivity loss, but at the same time it does boost incomes and helps consumption at a time when a real wage decline limits spending growth.”