The German Labour market saw an increase of 12.1% in the number of job vacancies during the fourth quarter of 2017 when compared to the previous year, according to survey data from the Institute for Employment Research (IAB).

The IAB’s data reported approximately 1.18 million vacancies in the German labour market nationwide in the fourth quarter of 2017, an increase of 128,000 from the previous year.

Approximately 918,000 of the job vacancies during the fourth quarter were available in West Germany while approximately 265,000 were available in East Germany.

Among the sectors, the manufacturing sector reported the biggest yearly increase in vacancies during the fourth quarter (35%). This was followed by the construction sector (24%).

Further data from the IAB showed that there were 194 unemployed persons per 100 vacancies in West Germany while in East Germany there were 225 unemployed persons per 100 vacancies.

Eurostat figures for Germany showed that the seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate stood at 3.8% in January 2018.