Eurozone unemployment lower than expected in May
Eurozone unemployment was lower than expected in May as the number of people without jobs dropped more than 300,000 and economies reopened from lockdowns.
The headline unemployment rate for the eurozone edged down to 7.9% from 8.1% a month earlier, Eurostat said, and was below the average analysts' forecast of 8%.
The number of people unemployed across the single currency zone fell by 306,000 to 12.8 million. The jobless rate remains 1.3% higher than before the pandemic but the downward trend has existed for three months running.
Unemployment fell in all of the eurozone's four biggest economies - Germany, France, Spain and Italy - with France's rate dropping to 7.5% from 7.8% in a month.
Claus Vistesen, an economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said: "The labour market recovery continued in May as large parts of the services economy were allowed to re-open. The headline rate remains well above its most recent trough of 7.1% … but unemployment is clearly on a downward trajectory."