Malta’s unemployment rate in May was one of the lowest in the EU and has slipped to the lowest levels in the past 12 months according to new statistics issued by Eurostat.

Malta’s positive statistics contrasts sharply with the rest of the EU where unemployment levels during the same month remained at record highs, reaching 10 per cent in the 16-member euro zone and 9.7 per cent on average in the EU 27.

A decrease in the unemployment figures of females led to Malta’s positive results.

According to the EU statistical arm, the number of females looking for a job in the past year decreased from 7.8 per cent in May last year to 6.7 per cent last May. On the other hand, the unemployment rate among those who are under 25, and males, remained stable at 14.9 and 6.7 per cent respectively.

On a national level, the unemployment rate in Malta decreased from 7.1 to 6.7 per cent in the past 12 months.

The situation in the rest of the EU is quite bleaker when it comes to people without a job with the exception of Austria, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, which are the only EU member states with lower unemployment figures than Malta.

According to Eurostat, in the EU 27 the average unemployment rate increased from 8.9 to 9.7 per cent in the past 12 months. The highest rates last May were recorded in Latvia (20 per cent), Spain (19.9 per cent) and Estonia (19 per cent).

Compared to a year ago, only five member states recorded a fall in the unemployment rate, including Malta, and 22 an increase.