EU UNEMPLOYMENT STABLE AT 6.8 PERCENT; EURO ZONE RATE ALSO

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BRUSSELS 000321 SIPDIS SIPDIS DOL FOR BLS AND ILAB TREASURY FOR IMI STATE FOR DRL/IL E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ELAB EUN SUBJECT: EU UNEMPLOYMENT STABLE AT 6.8 PERCENT; EURO ZONE RATE ALSO UNCHANGED AT 7.1 PERCENT ¶1. SUMMARY. The aggregate unemployment rate for the EU-27 was stable at 6.8 percent in January 2008, according to data published by the EU Commission's Statistical Office (EUROSTAT) on February 29. Unemployment in the euro zone (the fifteen EU countries participating in the euro - membership enlarged to Cyprus and Malta on January 2008 was also stable at 7.2 percent. END SUMMARY. ¶2. With seasonal adjustment and compensation for differences in national statistical methods, the unemployment rate in the EU-27 stood at 6.8 percent in January 2007, unchanged from the previous month and down from 7.5 percent in January 2007. The unemployment rate for the euro zone stood at 7.1 percent in January 2008, unchanged from December 2007 (comparison based on EU-15, membership effective since January 1, 2008) and down from 7.7 percent in January 2007. ¶3. The lowest monthly rates compiled by EUROSTAT from the EU-27 were recorded in the Netherlands (2.9 percent, January 2008) and Denmark (3.1 percent, December 2007). The highest rate was recorded in Slovakia (10.4 percent, January 2008). ¶4. EUROSTAT noted that twenty-four countries among the EU-27 recorded a decrease in their unemployment rate over a year and three an increase. The most significant decreases (January-to-January comparison) occurred in Poland (from 11.1 percent to 8.6 percent),Bulgaria (from 7.8 percent to 6.2 percent) and Latvia (6.6 percent to 5.0 percent). The highest increase was recorded in Estonia (from 4.8 percent to 5.6 percent). ¶5. Based on EUROSTAT estimates, male unemployment reached 6.3 percent in January 2008 for the EU-27 and 6.4 percent for the euro zone, down by 0.6 percentage point and 0.4 percentage point respectively when compared to January 2007. The female rate over the same period decreased to 7.4 percent for the EU-27 and to 7.9 percent for the euro zone, minus 0.8 percentage point and minus 0.9 percent respectively over the twelve-month period. ¶6. Unemployment rates among young people under 25 ranged from 5.5 percent in the Netherlands (January 2008) and 7.9 percent in Slovenia (fourth quarter of 2007) to 22.6 percent in Greece and 21.2 percent in Romania (third quarter of 2007). The rate for this age group in January 2007 was estimated at 14.7 percent for the EU-27 and 14.2 percent for the euro zone, compared to 16.0 percent (minus 1.3 percentage point) and 15.2 percent (minus 1.0 percentage point) respectively in January 2007. ¶7. EUROSTAT estimated that 16.1 million were unemployed in the EU-27 in January 2007 (10.9 million in the euro zone). Following is the breakdown of unemployment rates in ascending order for the individual EU member states: (Seasonally-adjusted) (January 2008 unless otherwise indicated) Netherlands 2.9 Denmark 3.1 (December 2007) Cyprus 3.6 Slovenia 4.1 Austria 4.2 Lithuania 4.5 Luxembourg 4.6 Czech Republic 4.7 Ireland 4.7 Latvia 5.0 UK 5.1 (November 2007) Estonia 5.6 Sweden 5.6 (provisional) Malta 5.8 Italy 6.0 (third quarter 2007) Bulgaria 6.2 Finland 6.4 Romania 6.5 Belgium 7.0 Hungary 7.2 Portugal 7.5 (x) Germany 7.6 France 7.8 Greece 8.2 (third quarter 2007) Poland 8.6 Spain 8.8 Slovakia 10.4 Euro zone 7.1 EU-27 6.8 BRUSSELS 00000321 002 OF 002 (x) Estimates for Portugal have been revised, due to a change of methodology. ¶8. The monthly rates and numbers of unemployed are estimated and based on data from the EU labor force survey. The estimated rates may differ from national unemployment rates due to differences in methods and definitions of unemployment. Unemployed people according to ILO criteria are those aged 15 and over who: -- Are without work; -- Are available to start work within the next two weeks; and -- Have actively sought employment at some time during the previous four weeks. WOHLERS