German unemployment rises more than expected in April

GERMAN unemployment rose more than expected in April, Labour Office figures showed on Friday (Apr 28), as a sluggish economy held back a strong spring revival on the labour market.

The Federal Labour Office said the number of people out of work increased by 24,000 in seasonally adjusted terms to 2.567 million. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected that figure to rise by 10,000.

The seasonally adjusted jobless rate remained stable at 5.6 per cent.

“The spring revival on the labour market remains weak in April,” said Labour Office head Andrea Nahles. “Overall, however, the labour market is in a stable condition,” Nahles said.

In April, there were 773,000 job openings, 79,000 fewer than a year ago. Although the Federal Labour Office has seen a slowdown in labour demand since the summer of 2022, it remains at a high level.

According to the spring economic projections of the German government, published on Wednesday, employment is expected to continue to grow this year and next, albeit at a somewhat slower pace.

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