Eurozone unemployment steady at record 11.4 pct

REUTERS photo

Official data show that unemployment in the 17 countries that use the euro remained at its record high of 11.4 percent in August.
 
While European leaders have managed to calm financial markets in recent months with promises to cut spending and build a tighter union, they have been unable to halt the rising tide of joblessness.
 
Some economists have argued that the very spending cuts that helped stabilize the crisis are what’s pushing unemployment higher and threatening the continent with recession. They have urged leaders to instead loosen spending to encourage growth.
 
In August, 34,000 more people lost their jobs in the eurozone, data released Monday showed. For all 27 countries in the European Union, that figures was 49,000, keeping its own rate steady at 10.5 percent.