Eurozone unemployment hits record high

Unemployment in the eurozone hit a record high in May, the EU's statistics office said Monday, rising to 11.1 percent from 11 percent in April. The announcement puts further pressure on the 17-country bloc's plans to create growth and cut government debt.


At a summit last Friday, eurozone leaders agreed a set of short- and long-term measures to shore up the euro and unveiled a limited economic growth package. Markets have responded positively with a stock market rally which, if sustained, should help buoy economic confidence in the eurozone - a key step to easing the crisis.

May’s unemployment rate compares badly with an unemployment rate of 8.2 percent in the United States and only 4.4 percent in Japan, and is expected to rise further in the coming months as the eurozone economy teeters on the edge of recession.

In total, 17.6 million people were out of work in the eurozone in May, 1.8 million higher than a year earlier.