The euro area seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate stood at 7.6% in April 2019, down from 8.4% last year and the lowest rate recorded since August 2008, according to Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

The EU28 unemployment rate stood at 6.4% in April 2019, down from 7.0% in April 2018, the lowest rate recorded in the EU28 since the start of the EU monthly unemployment series in January 2000.

When compared to the previous month, the euro area unemployment rate declined by 0.1% while the EU28 unemployment rate remained stable.

Eurostat estimated that 15.80 million men and women in the EU28, of whom 12.52 million in the euro area, were unemployed in April 2019. Compared with April 2018, unemployment fell by 1.39 million in the EU28 and by 1.14 million in the euro area.

Compared with March 2019, the number of persons unemployed decreased by 108,000 in the EU28 and by 64,000 in the euro area.

Among the member states, the lowest unemployment rates in April 2019 were recorded in the Czech Republic (2.1%), Germany (3.2%) and the Netherlands (3.3%). The highest unemployment rates were observed in Greece (18.5% in February 2019), Spain (13.8%) and Italy (10.2%).

Compared with a year ago, the unemployment rate fell in all member states except Luxembourg and Poland where it remained stable while an increase was registered in Denmark (from 5.2% to 5.3%).

The largest decreases were registered in Greece (from 20.6% to 18.5% between February 2018 and February 2019, which was the last available data), Estonia (from 6.0% to 4.1% between March 2018 and March 2019) and Spain (from 15.6% to 13.8%).

In April 2019, the youth unemployment rate stood at 14.2% in the EU28 and 15.8% in the euro area, compared with 15.4% and 17.2% respectively in April 2018.  The highest youth unemployment rates the highest were recorded in Greece (38.8% in February 2019), Spain (32.7%) and Italy (31.4%). The lowest in Germany (5.3%) and the Netherlands (6.2%).