19.3m jobless in EU25

Unemployment in Malta is just below the eurozone and the EU25 average of nine per cent, according to Eurostat.

Statistics released yesterday showed that in May this year unemployment in Malta was 8.9 per cent. The rate of unemployment varied between 4.2 per cent in Cyprus, Luxembourg and Austria and 18.9 per cent in Poland.

The unemployment rate in Malta remained the same between April and May. It had gone down from March when it stood at nine per cent. However, it had risen by 0.8 per cent from 8.1 per cent in May last year.

Eurostat said the rate of unemployment in the 25 member countries had gone down by 0.1 per cent from April 2004. In May 2003 this had been 9.1 per cent.

The unemployment rate within the eurozone remained the same in April and May.

The statistics agency said 12 member states recorded an increase in their unemployment rate over a year, 11 recorded a decrease and two maintained the same rate.

Eurostat estimated that in May 12.7 million men and women were unemployed in the eurozone and 19.3 million people were unemployed in the EU25.

The rate of unemployment in the United States stood at of 5.6 per cent in May and that in Japan at 4.6 per cent.