Eurozone unemployment stable, no jobs crisis for now

The level of unemployment in the eurozone did not change in February, official data showed on Tuesday, as national schemes to keep companies afloat held off the worst effects of the pandemic.

Eurostat, the EU's statistics agency, said unemployment was at 8.3 per cent in the 19 countries that use the euro single currency, the same as a revised figure for January.

Youth unemployment in the eurozone, which has risen more sharply during the Covid crisis, edged lower to 17.3 per cent, Eurostat said.

That still remained higher than a year before, just before a wave of lockdowns crushed the economy, when unemployment in the eurozone had stood at 7.4 percent, with youth unemployment at 15.4 per cent.

Joblessness in Europe exploded in the spring of 2020, the result of a landmark recession as restrictions on movement kept people at home in many countries across the globe.

However, many national governments implemented EU-backed job guarantee schemes and other programmes that have so far averted a long-term shock on employment that many had feared.