site.btaUnemployment in EU, Euro Area Unchanged in January, Down in Bulgaria, Eurostat Data

The unemployment rate in the EU in January 2025 was 5.8%, the same as in December 2024, but down 6.1% from January 2024. This data was published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union said.

The eurozone unemployment rate in January reached 6.2%, stable from the final month of last year and down from 6.5% in January 2024, according to seasonally adjusted data from the statistics agency.

Eurostat estimates that 12.824 million people in the EU, including 10.655 million in the euro area, are unemployed in January 2025.

Compared to December 2024, unemployment has fallen by 8,000 people in the EU and by 42,000 in the euro area. Compared to January 2024, unemployment decreased by 510,000 in the EU and by 547,000 in the euro area.

In January 2025, the highest unemployment rate in the EU was recorded in Spain (10.4%), followed by Sweden (8.9%), Finland and Greece (8.7%). At the other end of the scale with the lowest unemployment are the Czech Republic and Poland (2.6%), Malta (3%), Slovenia (3.3%), Germany (3.5%), and the Netherlands (3.8%).

The unemployment rate in Bulgaria in January 2025 dropped to 3.9% from 4% in December 2024, which is the lowest unemployment rate for the country since January 2023, Eurostat reports. In January 2024, Bulgaria's unemployment rate was 4.6%.