–Adds Comment from BA Head Frank-Juergen Weise in Paragraph 5
SA Unemployment: -21k (pan), -14k (west), -7k (east)
MNI survey median: -30,000 m/m
MNI survey range: -50,000 to -10,000 m/m
FRANKFURT (MNI) – Germany’s labor market continued its recovery in
June, as an additional 21,000 people left the jobless rolls, the Federal
Labor Agency said Wednesday.
The regional breakdown showed that unemployment declined by 14,000
in western Germany and by 7,000 in eastern Germany.
The reduction brings seasonally adjusted unemployment to 3.230
million, after 3.251 million in May. The seasonally adjusted
unemployment rate stayed at 7.7%.
Analysts polled by MNI expected a fall of around 30,000 in total
unemployment and for the rate to remain at 7.7%.
Average unemployment this year should be less than 3.4 million,
Labor Agency head Frank-Juergen Weise told reporters, but said he did
not know how much below.
In unadjusted terms, the number of unemployed came to 3.153
million, down from May’s 3.242 million, reducing the jobless rate to
7.5% from 7.7%.
Lagging unemployment figures by one month, the number of payroll
jobs in May expanded by 38,000, adding to April’s 41,000 gain, while job
vacancies in June rose by 6,000 matching May’s increase.
Germany’s labor market remained remarkably resilient through the
crisis thanks to short-time work schemes that allowed many companies to
keep skilled employees in employment at reduced hours.
Now, as the economy has recovered, with four straight quarterly
gains in GDP, a labor market recovery is also beginning to take hold.
Germany’s industry association DIHK predicted earlier this month
that the number of employees in short-time work across the economy will
fall to 100,000 by the end of the year, versus 830,000 at the end of
March.
Earlier today, the Federal Statistical Office announced that total
employment rose by 61,000 in May, based on International Labour
Organization terms.
— Frankfurt bureau: +49-69-720142, email: frankfurt@marketnews.com —
[TOPICS: M$G$$$,MAGDS$,M$X$$$,M$XDS$,MT$$$$]
