| Consensus | Actual | Previous | Revised | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rate | 6.5% | 6.5% | 6.5% | 6.6% |
Highlights
The Eurozone labour market made further, if more limited, progress in April. Joblessness declined 33,000 to 11.09 million following a smaller revised 68,000 drop in March. This saw the unemployment rate dip from March's upwardly revised 6.6 percent to 6.5 percent, in line with the market consensus and a new record low.
Regionally, the dip in the headline rate reflected falls in Italy (7.8 percent after 7.9 percent) and Spain (12.7 percent after 12.8 percent). France (7.0 percent) and Germany (2.9 percent) were both flat. Of note, in Austria, where the economy shrank 0.3 percent last quarter, the rate climbed fully 0.6 percentage points to 5.1 percent.
The April update will be seen by the ECB's hawks as a threat to inflation and so provides further reason for the central bank not taking its foot off the tightening pedal any time soon. That said, today's updates put the Eurozone ECDI at just minus 34 and the ECDI-P at minus 23 indicating that overall economic activity continues to run cooler than market expectations.
Regionally, the dip in the headline rate reflected falls in Italy (7.8 percent after 7.9 percent) and Spain (12.7 percent after 12.8 percent). France (7.0 percent) and Germany (2.9 percent) were both flat. Of note, in Austria, where the economy shrank 0.3 percent last quarter, the rate climbed fully 0.6 percentage points to 5.1 percent.
The April update will be seen by the ECB's hawks as a threat to inflation and so provides further reason for the central bank not taking its foot off the tightening pedal any time soon. That said, today's updates put the Eurozone ECDI at just minus 34 and the ECDI-P at minus 23 indicating that overall economic activity continues to run cooler than market expectations.
Market Consensus Before Announcement
Consensus for April's unemployment rate is no change at 6.5 percent.
Definition
The unemployment rate measures the number of unemployed as a percentage of the labor force.
Description
Unemployment data are closely monitored by the financial markets. These data give a comprehensive report on the state of the economy and its future direction. A rising unemployment rate can be a warning sign of hard times while a low rate can be a warning of inflation as wages are bid up to attract labor.
Unemployment data are expressed in both a numerical value and as a percentage of the labor force. Generally, the definition of those unemployed follows that of the International Labour Organisation (ILO). It states that an unemployed person is one between the ages of 15 to 74 years of age who was not employed during the reference week, had actively sought work during the past four weeks and was ready to begin working immediately or within two weeks. The unemployment rate is the percentage of unemployed persons over the total number of active persons in the labor market. Active persons are those who are either employed or unemployed.
Eurostat provides an unemployment rate for each EU country as well as for the EMU and EU as a whole. It should be noted that the unemployment rate for a country will frequently differ with that reported by the national statistics agency. That is because of the varying interpretations of the ILO definition by member states and Eurostat.
Unemployment data are expressed in both a numerical value and as a percentage of the labor force. Generally, the definition of those unemployed follows that of the International Labour Organisation (ILO). It states that an unemployed person is one between the ages of 15 to 74 years of age who was not employed during the reference week, had actively sought work during the past four weeks and was ready to begin working immediately or within two weeks. The unemployment rate is the percentage of unemployed persons over the total number of active persons in the labor market. Active persons are those who are either employed or unemployed.
Eurostat provides an unemployment rate for each EU country as well as for the EMU and EU as a whole. It should be noted that the unemployment rate for a country will frequently differ with that reported by the national statistics agency. That is because of the varying interpretations of the ILO definition by member states and Eurostat.
