German unemployment steady at record low in April

The German unemployment rate held steady at 6.2% in April, according to data released by the Federal Statistics Office.

The unemployment rate came in unchanged at 6.2% – the lowest level since reunification – as expected.

However, the number of unemployed people fell by a seasonally-adjusted 16,000 to 2.706m from the previous month, beating expectations for no change.

Pantheon Macroeconomics said this was “another rock solid report”.

“Claims fell at the fastest pace since January, and vacancies also rose, pushing the ratio between job openings and total number of unemployed to a new high. We expected a slight increase in jobless claims based on the recent fall in the IAB’s labour market indicator, but the data are not yet showing signs of weakening.”