Eurozone jobless at all-time high

Unemployment in the 17 countries using the euro has hit its highest since the currency was introduced in 1999, adding to fears the region is back in recession.

Eurostat, the European Union’s statistics office, said unemployment in the eurozone rose to 10.8 per cent in February from 10.7 per cent the previous month.

The number of unemployed totalled 17.1 million, nearly 1.5 million higher than the same month in 2011.

The eighth straight month of rising unemployment is likely to reinforce concerns that the eurozone is in recession

Jennifer McKeown, senior European economist at Capital Economics, said: “Soaring unemployment is clearly adding to the pressure on household incomes from aggressive fiscal tightening.”