The euro area1 (EA13) seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate2 stood at 7.2% in November 2007, unchanged compared with October3. It was 7.9% in November 2006. The EU271 unemployment rate was 6.9% in November 2007, the same as in October3. It was 7.7% in November 2006.

In November 2007, the lowest rates were registered in the Netherlands (2.9%) and Denmark (3.2%), and the highest in Slovakia (11.0%) and Poland (8.5%).

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

Over the last year, twenty-three Member States recorded a fall in their unemployment rate, two an increase, and Luxembourg and Romania remained stable. The largest relative falls were observed in Poland (12.2% to 8.5%) and Bulgaria (8.2% to 5.8%). Increases were registered in Portugal (7.9% to 8.2%) and Ireland (4.2% to 4.3%).

The unemployment rate for males fell from 7.0% to 6.5% between November 2006 and November 2007 in the euro area and from 7.2% to 6.4% in the EU27. The female unemployment rate declined from 9.0% to 8.0% in the euro area and from 8.4% to 7.4% in the EU27.

In November 2007, the unemployment rate for under-25s was 14.2% in the euro area and 14.9% in the EU27. In November 2006 it was 15.8% and 16.5% respectively. The lowest rates for under-25s were observed in the Netherlands (5.0%), Ireland (8.1%) and Austria (8.3%), and the highest in Greece (22.6% in the third quarter 2007), Romania (21.6%) and Italy (20.2% in the third quarter).

Eurostat estimates that 16.4 million men and women in the EU27, of which 11.0 million were in the euro area, were unemployed in November 2007. In November 2006, 18.3 million men and women in the EU27, of which 12.0 million were in the euro area, were unemployed.

In November 2007, the unemployment rate was 4.7% in the USA and 3.8% in Japan.

Unemployment (%) in November 2007 - in ascending order

NL DK CY LT IE AT SI CZ LU EE UK LV BG IT 2.9 3.2 3.8 4.0 4.3 4.3 4.3 4.8 4.9 5.2 Sep 07 5.2 5.4 5.8 2007 Q3 6.0

SE4 MT FI EU27 EA13 BE RO HU DE FR EL ES PT PL SK 6.0 6.1 6.7 6.9 7.2 7.2 7.2 7.3 7.9 7.9 2007 Q3 8.2 8.2 8.2 8.5 11.0 The euro area (EA13) consisted of 13 Member States up to 31 December 2007: Belgium, Germany, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia and Finland. From 1 January 2008 the euro area (EA15) also includes Cyprus and Malta.

The EU27 includes Belgium (BE), the Czech Republic (CZ), Denmark (DK), Germany (DE), Estonia (EE), Ireland (IE), Greece (EL), Spain (ES), France (FR), Italy (IT), Cyprus (CY), Latvia (LV), Lithuania (LT), Luxembourg (LU), Hungary (HU), Malta (MT), the Netherlands (NL), Austria (AT), Poland (PL), Portugal (PT), Slovenia (SI), Slovakia (SK), Finland (FI), Sweden (SE) and the United Kingdom (UK).

As part of Eurostat's guidelines for the dissemination of data when the EU or euro area is enlarged, the aggregate data series commented on in this News Release refer to the official composition of the euro area in the most recent month for which data is available. Thus News Releases with data for months up to December 2007 will comment on EA13 series, while Releases with data for January 2008 onwards will comment on EA15 series.

Eurostat's unemployment rates

Eurostat calculates harmonised unemployment rates for individual EU Member States, the euro area and the EU27. These unemployment rates are based on definitions recommended by the International Labour Organisation (ILO). Harmonised means that the national micro data concerning the individuals and households are treated by Eurostat as to allow comparability between the Member States.

According to the Eurostat definition unemployed people are those aged 15 to 74 who, following the International Labour Organisation (ILO) definition:

- are without work;

- are available to start work within the next two weeks;

- and have actively sought employment at some time during the previous four weeks.

The unemployment rate is the number of people unemployed as a percentage of the labour force. The labour force is the total number of people employed and unemployed.

The numbers of unemployed and the monthly unemployment rates are estimates based on results of the European Union Labour Force Survey which is a household survey carried out in all countries on the basis of agreed definitions. These results are interpolated/extrapolated to monthly data using national survey data and national monthly series on registered unemployment. The most recent figures are therefore provisional; first results from the Labour Force Survey are available 90 days after the end of the reference period for most Member States.

Monthly unemployment and employment series are calculated first at the level of four categories for each Member State (males and females 15-24 years, males and females 25-74 years). These series are then seasonally adjusted and all the national and European aggregates are calculated. Before the aggregation, missing national data are estimated using the most recent trends of the series.

Registered unemployed data are national administrative data compiled on a purely national basis and for national purposes. There are no European-wide rules on definition and coverage. Therefore the ensuing unemployment rates cannot be compared from one country to another. The conditions to receive unemployment benefits and assistance vary from one country to another. This affects the willingness of people to register themselves and, hence, the published unemployment rates.

Member States may also publish other rates than register based unemployment rates, for example based on national Labour Force Surveys or corresponding surveys. Although still internationally comparable, these rates may vary to a minor extent from those published by Eurostat due to different methodological choices.

Current deviations from the definition of unemployment in the EU Labour Force Survey:

Spain, United Kingdom: Unemployment is restricted to persons aged 16-74. In Spain the legal age limit for working is 16.

Netherlands: Persons without a job, who are available for work and looking for a job are only included in unemployment if they express that they would like to work.

The October 2007 unemployment rate published in News Release 165/2007 of 3 December 2007 for the EA13 remains unchanged, while the rate for the EU27 has been revised. The rate previously published was 7.0%. As a regular update of the calculation process, the most recent EU Labour Force Survey data have been included for several Member States. This has caused a revision in the monthly unemployment rates of more than 0.1 percentage points for Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Ireland, Lithuania, Latvia, Romania and Slovakia. Provisional data: the Swedish Labour Force Survey was amended in April 2005 to take further account of the EU harmonised methodology. This break in the series may affect the reliability of the seasonal adjustment. Quarterly data. Issued by: Eurostat Press Office Tim ALLEN Tel: +352-4301-33 444 mailto:eurostat-pressoffice@ec.europa.eu Eurostat news releases on Internet: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat For further information on data: Hubertus VREESWIJK Tel: +352-4301-34 323 mailto:hubertus.vreeswijk@ec.europa.eu Hannah KIIVER Tel: +352-4301-38 438 mailto:hannah.kiiver@ec.europa.eu

Selected Principal European Economic Indicators: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/euroindicators [ Figures and graphics available in PDF and WORD PROCESSED ]

SEASONALLY ADJUSTED UNEMPLOYMENT RATES (%)

TOTAL MALES AND FEMALES

Nov 2006 May 2007 Jun 2007 Jul 2007 Aug 2007 Sep 2007 Oct 2007 Nov 2007 EA13 7.9 7.5 7.4 7.4 7.3 7.3 7.2 7.2 EU27 7.7 7.2 7.1 7.1 7.0 7.0 6.9 6.9 EA15 7.9 7.5 7.4 7.4 7.3 7.3 7.2 7.2 BE 8.0 7.7 7.6 7.4 7.3 7.2 7.3 7.2 BG 8.2 7.1 6.9 6.9 6.6 6.5 6.1 5.8 CZ 6.5 5.6 5.4 5.3 5.2 5.1 5.0 4.8 DK 3.7 3.9 3.9 3.9 3.9 3.8 3.3 3.2 DE 9.2 8.5 8.4 8.4 8.3 8.2 8.1 7.9 EE 5.6 5.1 5.0 4.7 4.7 4.8 5.0 5.2 IE 4.2 4.5 4.6 4.6 4.6 4.5 4.2 4.3 EL5 8.6 8.4 8.4 8.2 8.2 8.2 : : ES 8.3 8.1 8.2 8.2 8.2 8.2 8.2 8.2 FR 8.9 8.5 8.4 8.2 8.2 8.1 8.0 7.9 IT5 6.5 5.9 5.9 6.0 6.0 6.0 : : CY 4.2 4.0 3.8 3.9 3.9 3.8 3.8 3.8 LV 6.3 5.9 5.8 6.0 5.8 5.7 5.5 5.4 LT 4.7 4.3 4.1 4.2 4.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 LU 4.9 4.9 4.9 4.9 4.9 4.8 4.9 4.9 HU 7.5 7.2 7.2 7.2 7.3 7.2 7.3 7.3 MT 7.0 6.4 6.4 6.2 6.3 6.3 6.2 6.1 NL 3.7 3.3 3.2 3.2 3.2 3.1 3.0 2.9 AT 4.5 4.4 4.4 4.4 4.4 4.3 4.3 4.3 PL 12.2 10.0 9.6 9.5 9.2 8.9 8.7 8.5 PT 7.9 8.1 8.1 8.0 8.1 8.0 8.2 8.2 RO 7.2 6.7 6.7 6.5 6.5 6.5 7.3 7.2 SI 5.4 4.9 4.9 4.8 4.7 4.5 4.4 4.3 SK 12.3 11.4 11.3 11.4 11.3 11.3 11.3 11.0 FI 7.3 6.9 6.9 6.9 6.9 6.8 6.8 6.7 SE4 6.3 6.2 5.8 5.7 5.8 5.9 5.9 6.0 UK 5.4 5.3 5.2 5.3 5.3 5.2 : : US 4.5 4.5 4.5 4.6 4.6 4.7 4.7 4.7 JP 4.0 3.8 3.7 3.6 3.8 4.0 4.0 3.8

: Data not available Source: Eurostat

SEASONALLY ADJUSTED UNEMPLOYMENT RATES (%) MALES

Nov 2006 May 2007 Jun 2007 Jul 2007 Aug 2007 Sep 2007 Oct 2007 Nov 2007 EA13 7.0 6.6 6.6 6.6 6.6 6.5 6.5 6.5 EU27 7.2 6.6 6.6 6.6 6.5 6.5 6.5 6.4 EA15 7.0 6.6 6.6 6.6 6.6 6.5 6.5 6.5 BE 7.0 6.7 6.6 6.7 6.6 6.6 6.5 6.5 BG 7.9 6.9 6.7 6.5 6.3 6.1 5.6 5.3 CZ 5.2 4.5 4.4 4.3 4.2 4.1 4.0 3.9 DK 3.2 3.5 3.6 3.6 3.6 3.6 3.0 2.9 DE 9.5 8.6 8.5 8.4 8.4 8.3 8.2 8.1 EE 6.1 5.7 5.8 5.7 5.8 5.9 5.9 6.1 IE 4.5 4.8 4.7 4.8 4.8 4.9 4.6 4.7 EL5 5.3 5.2 5.2 5.2 5.2 5.2 : : ES 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.3 6.3 6.3 6.4 6.4 FR 8.3 7.9 7.8 7.8 7.8 7.8 7.8 7.7 IT5 5.2 4.8 4.8 4.8 4.8 4.8 : : CY 3.5 3.4 3.3 3.3 3.3 3.2 3.2 3.3 LV 6.6 6.3 6.2 6.5 6.3 6.1 5.9 5.8 LT 4.6 4.3 4.1 3.9 3.8 3.9 3.8 3.9 LU 3.7 3.4 3.5 3.5 3.6 3.5 3.6 3.6 HU 7.2 7.0 6.9 6.9 6.9 6.9 7.0 7.0 MT 6.3 5.9 5.8 5.7 5.7 5.5 5.5 5.4 NL 3.2 2.8 2.8 2.8 2.8 2.7 2.7 2.7 AT 4.0 3.9 3.9 3.9 3.9 3.9 3.9 3.9 PL 11.3 9.3 9.0 8.9 8.6 8.4 8.2 8.0 PT 6.7 6.7 6.7 6.8 6.8 6.8 7.0 7.0 RO 8.2 7.5 7.5 7.2 7.3 7.3 8.4 8.3 SI 4.5 3.9 3.8 3.9 3.8 3.7 3.5 3.4 SK 11.3 10.1 10.1 10.1 10.1 10.0 9.9 9.7 FI 6.9 6.5 6.5 6.6 6.6 6.6 6.5 6.4 SE4 6.2 6.0 5.7 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.6 5.6 UK 5.7 5.6 5.5 5.6 5.5 5.5 : : US 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.7 4.7 4.8 4.9 4.7 JP 4.2 3.9 3.8 3.7 3.8 4.0 4.0 3.9

FEMALES

Nov 2006 May 2007 Jun 2007 Jul 2007 Aug 2007 Sep 2007 Oct 2007 Nov 2007 EA13 9.0 8.5 8.4 8.3 8.3 8.2 8.1 8.0 EU27 8.4 7.9 7.8 7.7 7.7 7.6 7.5 7.4 EA15 8.9 8.5 8.4 8.3 8.3 8.2 8.1 8.0 BE 9.2 8.9 8.8 8.2 8.1 7.9 8.2 8.1 BG 8.6 7.3 7.1 7.3 7.1 6.9 6.7 6.4 CZ 8.0 6.9 6.7 6.6 6.5 6.3 6.2 6.1 DK 4.3 4.2 4.1 4.2 4.2 4.0 3.7 3.6 DE 9.0 8.5 8.3 8.3 8.2 8.0 7.9 7.8 EE 5.0 4.4 4.2 3.7 3.6 3.8 4.1 4.2 IE 3.9 4.3 4.5 4.3 4.2 4.0 3.8 3.8 EL5 13.4 12.9 12.9 12.6 12.6 12.6 : : ES 11.2 10.8 10.8 10.7 10.7 10.7 10.6 10.6 FR 9.5 9.1 9.0 8.7 8.6 8.5 8.2 8.1 IT5 8.3 7.6 7.6 7.7 7.7 7.7 : : CY 5.0 4.7 4.5 4.7 4.6 4.4 4.5 4.4 LV 5.9 5.6 5.5 5.5 5.3 5.2 5.0 4.9 LT 4.8 4.4 4.2 4.5 4.3 4.2 4.2 4.1 LU 6.4 6.7 6.7 6.6 6.6 6.5 6.5 6.5 HU 7.8 7.5 7.5 7.6 7.6 7.6 7.6 7.6 MT 8.3 7.5 7.4 7.4 7.6 7.7 7.6 7.4 NL 4.2 3.8 3.8 3.6 3.6 3.5 3.4 3.3 AT 5.1 5.0 5.0 5.0 5.0 4.9 4.9 4.9 PL 13.4 10.8 10.4 10.2 9.8 9.5 9.4 9.0 PT 9.3 9.7 9.7 9.4 9.5 9.4 9.6 9.5 RO 5.9 5.7 5.7 5.5 5.5 5.5 5.9 5.9 SI 6.5 6.1 6.1 5.9 5.6 5.5 5.3 5.3 SK 13.6 12.9 12.8 12.9 12.9 12.8 12.9 12.7 FI 7.8 7.3 7.2 7.2 7.1 7.1 7.0 7.0 SE4 6.4 6.4 5.9 5.7 5.9 6.2 6.2 6.3 UK 5.0 5.0 4.9 5.0 5.0 4.9 : : US 4.5 4.3 4.4 4.6 4.6 4.5 4.5 4.6 JP 3.7 3.6 3.5 3.3 3.7 4.0 3.9 3.6

: Data not available Source: Eurostat

SEASONALLY ADJUSTED UNEMPLOYMENT RATES (%) UNDER 25 YEARS

Nov 2006 May 2007 Jun 2007 Jul 2007 Aug 2007 Sep 2007 Oct 2007 Nov 2007 EA13 15.8 14.7 14.7 14.6 14.6 14.5 14.3 14.2 EU27 16.5 15.4 15.3 15.3 15.2 15.1 15.0 14.9 EA15 15.8 14.7 14.7 14.6 14.6 14.4 14.3 14.2 BE 20.5 20.1 20.1 17.9 17.7 17.3 18.4 18.4 BG 16.6 14.5 14.2 15.7 15.3 14.9 12.7 12.0 CZ 14.8 12.0 11.3 10.6 10.1 10.2 9.6 9.2 DK 7.5 8.0 8.2 8.7 8.8 9.1 8.3 8.4 DE 12.0 11.2 11.1 10.9 10.9 10.8 10.7 10.5 EE5 10.3 10.8 10.8 10.7 10.7 10.7 : : IE 7.8 8.9 7.8 8.7 8.8 9.9 8.0 8.1 EL5 25.5 22.9 22.9 22.6 22.6 22.6 : : ES 17.6 18.1 18.4 18.4 18.5 18.4 18.2 18.3 FR 21.7 19.8 19.6 18.9 18.7 18.4 18.4 18.1 IT5 21.7 18.6 18.6 20.2 20.2 20.2 : : CY5 9.8 9.6 9.6 9.3 9.3 9.3 : : LV5 11.5 10.8 10.8 11.9 11.9 11.9 : : LT5 8.1 7.6 7.6 8.9 8.9 8.9 : : LU 17.0 16.4 16.4 16.4 16.7 16.0 16.4 16.4 HU 19.3 17.4 17.3 17.7 17.8 17.7 18.3 18.3 MT 14.7 13.2 13.0 12.6 12.4 11.8 11.5 11.2 NL 6.6 6.1 6.3 6.0 5.8 5.4 5.3 5.0 AT 8.6 8.5 8.4 8.5 8.5 8.3 8.3 8.3 PL 26.9 22.5 21.7 21.7 21.1 20.5 19.7 19.3 PT 17.0 16.4 16.4 16.3 16.3 16.2 16.1 16.0 RO 21.1 20.8 20.8 21.1 21.1 21.0 21.6 21.6 SI5 10.8 9.6 9.6 9.8 9.8 9.8 : : SK 23.7 20.6 20.2 19.9 19.4 19.2 18.7 18.3 FI 17.9 16.3 16.3 16.3 16.4 16.5 16.5 16.5 SE4 18.7 19.2 17.7 17.5 18.0 18.7 18.7 19.1 UK 14.1 14.8 14.4 14.7 14.6 14.6 : : US 10.5 10.0 10.5 10.6 10.7 11.1 10.8 10.7 JP : : : : : : : :

25 YEARS AND OVER

Nov 2006 May 2007 Jun 2007 Jul 2007 Aug 2007 Sep 2007 Oct 2007 Nov 2007 EA13 6.9 6.6 6.5 6.5 6.5 6.4 6.4 6.3 EU27 6.6 6.2 6.1 6.0 6.0 5.9 5.9 5.9 EA15 6.9 6.6 6.5 6.5 6.4 6.4 6.3 6.3 BE 6.7 6.4 6.3 6.3 6.3 6.2 6.1 6.1 BG 7.4 6.4 6.2 6.1 5.9 5.7 5.6 5.3 CZ 5.7 5.0 4.9 4.8 4.7 4.6 4.6 4.5 DK 3.1 3.1 3.1 3.0 3.0 2.9 2.5 2.4 DE 8.8 8.2 8.1 8.0 7.9 7.8 7.7 7.6 EE 5.0 4.3 4.3 3.9 3.9 4.0 4.2 4.3 IE 3.5 3.7 4.0 3.8 3.8 3.5 3.5 3.6 EL5 7.2 7.2 7.2 7.1 7.1 7.1 : : ES 7.1 6.9 6.9 6.9 6.9 6.9 6.9 6.9 FR 7.4 7.2 7.1 7.0 7.0 6.9 6.8 6.8 IT5 5.2 4.9 4.9 4.8 4.8 4.8 : : CY 3.5 3.4 3.2 3.3 3.3 3.2 3.2 3.2 LV 5.5 5.2 5.2 5.1 5.0 4.8 4.7 4.6 LT 4.3 4.0 3.8 3.7 3.6 3.5 3.6 3.6 LU 3.9 4.0 4.1 4.0 4.1 4.0 4.1 4.1 HU 6.5 6.3 6.4 6.4 6.4 6.4 6.4 6.4 MT 5.0 4.8 4.7 4.7 4.8 4.9 4.9 4.8 NL 3.1 2.7 2.7 2.6 2.7 2.6 2.6 2.5 AT 3.8 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.7 PL 10.3 8.4 8.1 7.9 7.7 7.5 7.4 7.2 PT 7.0 7.2 7.3 7.2 7.2 7.2 7.4 7.4 RO 5.6 5.1 5.1 4.9 4.9 5.0 5.7 5.7 SI 4.8 4.4 4.3 4.1 4.1 4.0 3.9 3.9 SK 10.9 10.2 10.2 10.3 10.3 10.3 10.3 10.2 FI 5.8 5.5 5.5 5.5 5.5 5.4 5.3 5.2 SE4 4.6 4.3 4.1 4.0 4.1 4.1 4.1 4.1 UK 3.8 3.6 3.6 3.6 3.6 3.5 : : US 3.4 3.5 3.5 3.7 3.6 3.6 3.7 3.7 JP : : : : : : : :

: Data not available Source: Eurostat

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