The euro area (EA17) seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 12.1% in June 2013, stable compared with May. The EU27 unemployment rate was 10.9%, down from 11.0% in May. In both zones, rates have risen compared with June 2012, when they were 11.4% and 10.5% respectively.

Eurostat estimates that 26.424 million men and women in the EU27, of whom 19.266 million were in the euro area, were unemployed in June 2013. Compared with May 2013, the number of persons unemployed decreased by 32 000 in the EU27 and by 24 000 in the euro area. Compared with June 2012, unemployment rose by 1.080 million in the EU27 and by 1.129 million in the euro area.

Member States

Among the Member States, the lowest unemployment rates were recorded in Austria (4.6%), Germany (5.4%) and Luxembourg (5.7%), and the highest in Greece (26.9% in April 2013) and Spain (26.3%).

Compared with a year ago, the unemployment rate increased in seventeen Member States and fell in ten. The highest increases were registered in Cyprus (11.7% to 17.3%), Greece (23.1% to 26.9% between April 2012 and April 2013) and Slovenia (8.8% to 11.2%). The largest decreases were observed in Latvia (15.5% to 12.5% between the first quarters of 2012 and 2013) and Estonia (10.1% to 8.0% between May 2012 and May 2013).

In June 2013, the unemployment rate in the United States was 7.6%, stable compared with May and down from 8.2% in June 2012.

Youth unemployment

In June 2013, 5.512 million young persons (under 25) were unemployed in the EU27, of whom 3.526 million were in the euro area. Compared with June 2012, youth unemployment decreased by 43 000 in the EU27 and increased by 43 000 in the euro area. In June 2013, the youth unemployment rate was 23.2% in the EU27 and 23.9% in the euro area, compared with 22.8% and 23.0% respectively in June 2012. In June 2013, the lowest rates were observed in Germany (7.5%), Austria (9.3%) the Netherlands (11.0%) and Malta (11.2%), and the highest in Greece (58.7% in April 2013) and Spain (56.1%).