"Economic recovery" too modest for jobs

The much trumpeted economic recovery in the eurozone countries and, particularly, France and Germany, has proved to be too modest to ease the jobless situation. According to the seasonally adjusted figures published by the Bundesbank, the number of unemployed in August rose by 24,000 to 4.414 million, equivalent to 10.6 per cent of the working population. The unadjusted figures are slightly better, with the unadjusted jobless total falling by 13,400 to 4.347 million, but this is misleading as unemployment always goes down slightly at the end of the summer.

Whichever way one looks at it, the situation is not hopeful with the brunt of the problems concentrated in the eastern part of the country, where there have been weekly demonstrations against Chancellor Schröder’s proposed welfare reforms.