The euro area (EA15) seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate stood at 7.3% in July 2008, unchanged compared with June. It was 7.4% in July 2007. The EU27 unemployment rate was 6.8% in July 2008, unchanged compared with June. It was 7.1% in July 2007.

Eurostat estimates that 16.292 million men and women in the EU27, of which 11.372 million in the euro area, were unemployed in July 2008. Compared with June 2008, the number of persons unemployed decreased by 73 000 in the EU27 and increased by 25 000 in the euro area. Compared with July 2007, unemployment fell by 563 000 in the EU27 and rose by 59 000 in the euro area.

Among the Member States, the lowest unemployment rates were registered in Denmark (2.3%) and the Netherlands (2.6%), and the highest in Spain (11.0%) and Slovakia (10.3%).

Compared with a year ago, twenty Member States recorded a fall in their unemployment rate, six an increase and in one the rate remained stable. The largest falls were observed in Poland (9.5% to 6.8%) and Denmark (4.1% to 2.3%), and the highest increases in Spain (8.2% to 11.0%) and Ireland (4.6% to 5.9%).

The unemployment rate for males increased from 6.6% to 6.7% between July 2007 and July 2008 in the euro area and fell from 6.6% to 6.4% in the EU27. The female unemployment rate declined from 8.4% to 8.1% in the euro area and from 7.7% to 7.2% in the EU27.

In July 2008, the youth unemployment rate (under-25s) was 14.7% in the euro area and 14.6% in the EU27. In July 2007 it was 14.6% and 15.3% respectively. The lowest rates were observed in the Netherlands (4.5%) and in Denmark (4.9%), and the highest in Spain (24.8%) and Greece (22.7% in the first quarter 2008).

The unemployment rate was 5.7% in the USA in July 2008 and 4.1% in Japan in June 2008.