05/30/2024 – 10:10
In the series of economic indicators for the euro zone released this Thursday, the Dutch bank ING highlights that the fall in the unemployment rate in April, to a new historic low, reinforces optimism about the economy in the second quarter, but additional declines in the rate from now on they must “run up against productivity gains”.
The unemployment rate in the euro zone fell from 6.5% in March to 6.4% in April, after seasonal adjustments, a new record low. Unemployment has remained at 6.5% since the beginning of the current year and was also at that level in April 2023.
“The strong labor market is helping the economic recovery, as it keeps wage growth high and allowed purchasing power to recover after the inflation peak. The question is whether the economic recovery will result in lower unemployment going forward. We doubt that,” says Bert Colijn, the bank’s senior economist for the euro zone. Colijn highlights that employment expectations for services and industry showed a downward trend, despite the better economic prospects. “We hope that the modest economic recovery will result, to a large extent, in productivity gains”, he reinforces.
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