The euro area (EA15) seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate stood at 7.1% in March 2008, unchanged compared with February. It was 7.5% in March 2007. The EU27 unemployment rate was 6.7% in March 2008, also unchanged compared with February. It was 7.3% in March 2007.

Eurostat estimates that 15.993 million men and women in the EU27, of which 10.930 million were in the euro area, were unemployed in March 2008. Compared with February 2008, the number of persons unemployed decreased by 93 000 and 26 000 respectively. Compared with March 2007, unemployment was down by 1.4 million in the EU27 and by 0.6 million in the euro area.

These figures are published by Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities.

Among the Member States, the lowest unemployment rates were registered in the Netherlands (2.6%) and Denmark (3.1% in February), and the highest in Slovakia (9.8%) and Spain (9.3%).

Over the last year, twenty-three Member States recorded a fall in their unemployment rate and four an increase. The largest falls were observed in Poland (10.3% to 7.7%), Bulgaria (7.5% to 5.9%) and Slovakia (11.3% to 9.8%), and the highest increases in Spain (8.1% to 9.3%) and Ireland (4.6% to 5.6%).

The unemployment rate for males fell from 6.7% to 6.3% between March 2007 and March 2008 in the euro area and from 6.7% to 6.2% in the EU27. The female unemployment rate declined from 8.6% to 8.0% in the euro area and from 8.1% to 7.3% in the EU27.

In March 2008, the youth unemployment rate (under-25s) was 14.5% in the euro area and 14.6% in the EU27. In March 2007 it was 14.9% and 15.7% respectively. The lowest rates were observed in the Netherlands (5.0%) and Denmark (6.8% in February), and the highest in Greece and Italy (both 21.8% in the fourth quarter 2007).