EU unemployment rate at lowest since January 2000

ANKARA. KAZINFORM Unemployment rate in the European Union stood at 6.3% in September, marking the lowest rate since 2000, the block's statistical office said on Thursday.

photo: QAZINFORM

«Compared with September 2018, unemployment fell by 889,000 in the EU28,» Eurostat said.

It was stable compared to the last month and down from 6.7% year-on-year.

The lowest unemployment rate was recorded in Czechia with 2.1%, the data showed, with Germany following it with 3.1%, Anadolu Agency reports.

The highest unemployment rate, however, was observed in Greece (16.9% with the latest data available in July 2019). Spain came second with 14.2%.

In September the youth unemployment rate was 14.5% in the EU28, compared with 15.0% in the same month last year, it added.

Also, Eurostat's preliminary flash estimate for the third quarter of 2019 showed that seasonally adjusted GDP rose by 1.4% in the EU28 year-on-year.

Euro area annual inflation is expected to post 0.7% rate in October 2019, down from 0.8% in September, it said.

«Looking at the main components of euro area inflation, services are expected to have the highest annual rate in October (1.6%, compared with 1.5% in September), followed by food, alcohol & tobacco (1.6%, stable compared with September),» it added.