Other than our own data released on the Research page, one of the best sources of statistics on European markets is the European Commission’s Eurostat website. Eurostat in its own words is the statistical office of the European Union situated in Luxembourg. Its task is to provide the European Union with statistics at European level that enable comparisons between countries and regions.

For the analyst tasked to provide information for their senior management the home page provides a wealth of data including:

• Most popular database tables such as employment and unemployment rates and real gdp growth
• Selected Statistics include the European 2020 indicators. These measure the progress made by the EU and the Member States towards achieving the 5 headline targets including the target that 75 % of the population aged 20-64 should be employed.
• Selected Publications show Eurostats “flagship publications” including a comprehensive selection of statistical data on Europe in the Eurostat Yearbook and details of taxation trends.
• The latest news releases and statistics in focus as self-explanatory and include RSS feeds to keep the analyst up to date.
• For those who like their information presented visually the country profiles uses a map of Europe which can display a wide large range of data on themes including Labour Markets.
• In the spotlight provides data on such topics as the financial crisis, and GDP and beyond
• The release calendar highlights up and coming market moving data and also provides a useful link to national statistical institutes.
• Statistics Explained is the official Eurostat website presenting statistical topics in an easily understandable way, together with a statistical glossary clarifying all terms used.

Many of the above areas are highlighted in a useful demo tour.  The links area at the top of the page is also incredibly valuable, it provides resources for:

• National Statistical offices
• International Organisations
• Business Cycle Research Institutes
• Central banks
• Synthetic Indicators and Forecasts
• The European Commission

At the heart of the website is the Eurostat database, which is updated twice a day and covers tthe European Union, the EU Member States, the euro-zone, Candidate countries and EFTA countries.

The database is accessed through the icon and improved functionality can be obtained by registering at the top of the webpage. Statistics that you may be interested in include:

• Employment and unemployment from the Labour Force Survey,
• Job vacancy statistics
• Earnings
• Labour costs
• Labour market policy
• Labour disputes

Here at Staffing Industry Analysts we are experts at interrogating the database and would be happy to work with members who want to know more.