site.btaBulgaria Records Lowest Unemployment in Euro Area in January

Bulgaria registered the lowest seasonally adjusted unemployment rate among euro area countries in January 2026, according to Eurostat data published on Wednesday. 

The euro area unemployment was 6.1%, down from 6.2% in December 2025 and from 6.3% in January 2025. The EU unemployment rate was 5.8% in January 2026, also down from 5.9% in December 2025 and from 6% in January 2025.

Eurostat estimates that a total of 12,928 million persons in the EU, of whom 10,770 million in the euro area, were unemployed in January 2026. Compared with December 2025, unemployment decreased by 185,000 in the EU and by 184,000 in the euro area. Compared with January 2025, unemployment decreased by 274,000 in the EU and by 273,000 in the euro area.

Data released by Eurostat show that in January 2026, the first month in which Bulgaria became a full member of the euro area, the country's unemployment rate stood at 3.1%, the lowest in the entire currency union. In December, the rate was 3.2%. Eurostat also released figures showing what the unemployment rate in the euro area would be without including Bulgaria's data. Excluding Bulgaria, the unemployment rate among the euro area countries was 6.2%.

After Bulgaria, the lowest unemployment rate was registered in Malta (3.4%) and Slovenia (3.9%). The highest unemployment rates in the euro area were in Finland (10%), Spain (9.8%), and both France and Greece (7.7%).

Youth unemployment

In January 2026, 2,922 million young persons (under 25) were unemployed in the EU, of whom 2.352 million were in the euro area. In January 2026, the youth unemployment rate was 15.1% in the EU, down from 15.2% in the previous month, and 14.8% in the euro area, also down from 15.0% in December 2025.

Compared with December 2025, youth unemployment decreased by 27,000 in the EU as well as in the euro area. Compared with January 2025, youth unemployment decreased by 27,000 in the EU and increased by 12,000 in the euro area.