Eurozone unemployment dips again in September

November 03, 2021: The unemployment rate in the eurozone dropped again in September, official figures showed on Wednesday, as the economic bounceback from the pandemic kept hiring strong.

The EU's Eurostat agency said the seasonally-adjusted jobless rate -- which measures the number of people out of work as a proportion of the active population as a whole -- dipped to 7.4 percent in September from 7.5 percent in August and 7.6 percent in July.

In the 27-member European Union, which includes countries not in the single currency bloc, unemployment fell to 6.7 percent in September from 6.9 percent in August.

The data were a marked improvement over a year earlier when the jobless rate stood at 8.6 percent in the euro area and 7.7 percent in the wider EU.

The agency estimates that 14.32 million EU residents were out of work in September.

Youth unemployment stood at 15.9 percent in the EU and 16 percent in the eurozone, also down slightly on the previous month.

The reopening of the economy from coronavirus restrictions has seen the demand for workers surge, especially in hard-hit sectors such as hospitality.

Eurostat said last week the eurozone economy had rebounded in the third quarter of 2021 to close to pre-pandemic levels.

But analysts say global supply chain bottlenecks, staff shortages and surging inflation look set to put the brakes on growth in the coming months.

AFP/APP