04 June 2019

Euro area unemployment at 7.6%

The euro area (EA19) seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 7.6% in April 2019, down from 7.7% in March 2019 and from 8.4% in April 2018. This is the lowest rate recorded in the euro area since August 2008.

The EU28 unemployment rate was 6.4% in April 2019, stable compared with March 2019 and down from 7.0% in April 2018. This remains the lowest rate recorded in the EU28 since the start of the EU monthly unemployment series in January 2000. These figures are published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

Eurostat estimates that 15.802 million men and women in the EU28, of whom 12.529 million in the euro area, were unemployed in April 2019. Compared with March 2019, the number of persons unemployed decreased by 108 000 in the EU28 and by 64 000 in the euro area. Compared with April 2018, unemployment fell by 1.394 million in the EU28 and by 1.147 million in the euro area.

Member States

Among the Member States, the lowest unemployment rates in April 2019 were recorded in Czechia (2.1%), Germany (3.2%) and the Netherlands (3.3%). The highest unemployment rates were observed in Greece (18.5% in February 2019), Spain (13.8%) and Italy (10.2%).

Compared with a year ago, the unemployment rate fell in all Member States except Luxembourg and Poland where it remained stable while an increase was registered in Denmark (from 5.2% to 5.3%). The largest decreases were registered in Greece (from 20.6% to 18.5% between February 2018 and February 2019), Estonia (from 6.0% to 4.1% between March 2018 and March 2019) and Spain (from 15.6% to 13.8%).

In April 2019, the unemployment rate in the United States was 3.6%, down from 3.8% in March 2019 and from 3.9% in April 2018.

Full press release

© Eurostat