German jobless rate hits record low in January

German jobless rate fell for the fourth consecutive month in January and hit its lowest level since German reunification two decades ago, official data showed on Thursday.

In seasonally adjusted terms, the number of unemployed people fell by 9,000 to 2.84 million in January, German Federal Labour Agency said. The adjusted jobless rate thus dropped to 6.5 percent, following a rate of 6.6 percent in December last year.

"The labour market is linked to the good performance of last year," said Frank-Juergen Weise, chief of the Nuremberg-based labour agency.

In a separate report, German statistical office Destatis said roughly 42.8 million people were in employment in December 2014. The adjusted unemployment rate measured by concept of International Labour Organization (ILO) in December fell to 4.8 percent from the 5.0 percent in previous month.

Germany has one of the most stable labour market in the euro zone where the average ILO jobless rate was 11.5 percent in November last year.

The stable labour market, combined with increasing wages, low inflation and interest rates, encouraged German consumers to open their wallets and boosted the recovery of Europe's biggest economy.

In 2014, German economy overcame a weak phrase in summer months and expanded by 1.5 percent over the whole year thanks mainly to strong private consumption.

Analysts said falling oil prices in recent weeks and the depreciation of euro due to the European Central Bank's large scale money printing program would act as stimulus for German economy. Consumers confidence has surged to its highest level in more than 13 years.

On Wednesday, German government raised its forecast for economic growth in 2015 to 1.5 percent from the previously expected 1.3 percent.

Household consumption, according to the government, would increase by 1.6 percent in the new year and played a key role in supporting the economy. Endit