Euro Area Employment Rises More than Expected

The number of employed persons in the Euro Area rose by 0.2% from the previous quarter to 176.13 million in the final quarter of 2025, ahead of the market expectations of a 0.1% increase, according to a preliminary estimate. It was the bloc's 19th consecutive period of employment growth, extending the slow but consistent trend of increasing jobs in the European labor market, despite concerns that a stronger euro would reduce orders for major employers. Among the Eurozone's largest economies, job growth remained sharp in Spain (0.8% vs 0.7% in Q3) offsetting a second month of contraction for Germany (-0.1% vs -0.1%). Germany remained without a significant increase in employment growth for the 10th straight quarter.

The number of employed persons in the Euro Area rose by 0.2% in the from the previous quarter to 172.21 million in the third quarter of 2025, revised higher from the preliminary estimate of a 0.1% and ahead of the initial market expectations of a 0.1% increase. It was the 18th consecutive period of employment growth in the currency bloc, extending the slow but consistent trend of increasing jobs in the European labor market. Among the largest economies, employment grew 0.7% for a second period in Spain and 0.1% in France, while that from Italy also edged 0.1% higher to erase the pullback in June. On the other hand, employment contracted by 0.1% in Germany to mark nine consecutive quarters without employment growth. From the previous year, employment in the Eurozone grew by 0.6%, the softest pace since the post-Covid recovery began in the second quarter of 2021.

The number of employed persons in the Euro Area rose by 0.1% from the previous quarter to 172.049 million in the third quarter of 2025, maintaining the growth rate from the earlier period, and aligned with market expectations. It was the 18th consecutive period of employment growth in the currency bloc, extending the slow but consistent trend of increasing jobs in the European labor market. Among the largest economies, employment grew 0.7% in Spain and 0.1% in France. On the other hand, it contracted by 0.1% in Germany to mark nine consecutive quarters without significant employment growth. From the previous year, employment in the Eurozone grew by 0.5%, the softest pace since the post-Covid recovery began in the second quarter of 2021.