The unemployment rate in the Euro Area dropped to 7.4% in August the lowest since mid-2008. According to seasonally adjusted data published by Eurostat. Throughout the European Union, the number of unemployed people have also declined, with a share of 6.2%. The Czech Republic has the lowest unemployment rate in the EU at two percent.
In July, 6.3% of people in the EU were out of work, a year ago it was four-tenths of a percentage point higher.
Among the member countries, Germany is behind the Czech Republic with 3.1%. Greece has the highest (17% – June) followed by Spain (13.8%).
Unemployment fell in 24 EU member states year-on-year, most of all in southern European countries. It only grew in Sweden, Denmark, and Lithuania.
Compared to last year, the number of unemployed persons under the age of 25 also decreased. In the euro area, their share was 14.2% (15.1% in 2018) and across the EU 15.4% (16.8%).
Overall, there were 12,169 million unemployed people in the euro area in August, 115,000 less than in July. Across the EU, 15.432 million people were out of work, so their number decreased by 111,000 per month.
When calculating unemployment in the Czech Republic, Eurostat uses data from the Czech Statistical Office (CZSO), which differs from that of the Czech Labor Office. According to the Labor Office, the unemployment rate in the Czech Republic in August was 2.7% in July.