Investing.com - The euro zone’s unemployment rate fell to the lowest level in more than four years in February, fueling optimism over the health of the region's economy, official data showed on Monday.
In a report, Eurostat said that the euro zone’s unemployment rate fell to a seasonally adjusted 10.3% from an upwardly revised 10.4% in January. This is the lowest rate recorded in the euro area since August 2011.
The EU28 unemployment rate was 8.9% in February 2016, stable compared to January 2016, and down from 9.7% in February 2015. This is the lowest rate recorded in the EU28 since May 2009.
EUR/USD was trading at 1.1372 from around 1.1370 ahead of the release of the data, while EUR/GBP was at 0.8011 from 0.8009 earlier.
Meanwhile, European stock markets were broadly higher. The EURO STOXX 50 rose 0.55%, Germany's DAX tacked on 0.4%, France’s CAC 40 inched up 0.35%, while London’s FTSE 100 added 0.35%.