Investing.com - The number of unemployed people in Germany rose for the first time in six months in May, while the country’s jobless rate held steady at a record low, official data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, Germany's Federal Statistics Office said the number of unemployed people increased by a seasonally adjusted 24,000 this month, disappointing expectations for a drop of 15,000. Jobless claims in April fell by 25,000.
The report showed that Germany’s unemployment held steady at 6.7% in May, in line with expectations and unchanged from April.
Following the release of the data, the euro added to losses against the U.S. dollar, with EUR/USD easing down 0.12% to trade at 1.3620, compared to 1.3624 ahead of the data.
Meanwhile, European stock markets remained lower. Germany's DAX shed 0.1%, the Euro Stoxx 50 fell 0.25%, France’s CAC 40 dipped 0.1%, while London’s FTSE 100 inched down 0.1%.