Eurozone Jobless Rate Above Forecasts at 6.4%

The Eurozone's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate held at 6.4% in July, matching June's revised reading and slightly above the 6.3% forecast. The number of unemployed was unchanged from June at 11.264 million. Meanwhile, youth unemployment stood edged down to near one-year low of 14.9% from 15% in the prior month, with 2.371 million young people under 25 unemployed. Among the major economies in the bloc, Spain (10%), France (8.3%), and Italy (7.8%) recorded the highest rates, whereas Germany (4%) and the Netherlands (4%) posted the lowest rates. A year ago, the jobless rate was slightly lower at 6.3%. In the broader European Union, the unemployment rate remained unchanged for the sixth consecutive month at 6.1%.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in the Eurozone was at 6.3% for the fourth straight month in June of 2026, slightly under market expectations that it would be at a record low of 6.2%. The result maintained the period of stability in the currency bloc's labor market despite the surge in energy costs and interest rates in recent periods due to the outbreak of war in the Middle East. The number of unemployed individuals rose by 69 thousand from the previous month to 11.13 million. In turn, the unemployment rate for those aged under 25 years fell to 14.8% from 14.9% in the previous month. Among the largest economies in the Euro Area, the unemployment rate rose for Germany (3.9% vs 3.8% in May) and Italy (5.7% vs 5.3%), while it remained unchanged in France (8.2%) and fell in Spain (10.1% vs 10.2%) and the Netherlands (3.8% vs 3.9%).

The Euro Area seasonally adjusted unemployment rate came in at 6.2% in May 2026, tying the record lows from late 2024 and unchanged from the prior month. Analysts had estimated it at 6.3%. The number of unemployed fell by 55,000 from a month earlier to a near 1-1/2-year low of 10.986 million. Meanwhile, youth unemployment stood at 14.7% in May, matching April's reading, with 2.313 million young people under 25 unemployed. Among the major economies in the bloc, Germany (3.8%) and the Netherlands (3.9%) recorded the lower rates, whereas Spain (10.3%), France (8.2%), and Italy (5%) posted the highest rates. A year ago, the jobless rate was also at 6.3%. In the broader European Union, the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 5.9% in May.