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Germany sees highest employment on record

Xinhua, February 19, 2015 Adjust font size:

The number of people employed in Germany reached its highest level on record in the last quarter of 2014 when the German economy rebounded, official data showed on Thursday.

Over 43 million people were in employment in the fourth quarter of 2014, German federal statistical office Destatis said, adding that it was the highest number since German reunification 25 years ago.

Compared with the fourth quarter of 2013, the employment rate increased by 1 percent. In a quarter-on-quarter comparison, German employment increased by 0.2 percent during October to December in seasonally adjusted terms.

According to Destatis, the growth was mainly due to growth in the service sector among which the public service, education and health saw the largest gains of 116,000 people or 1.1 percent.

The German economy overcame a weak period during the summer months last year and rebounded in the last quarter. Its gross domestic product (GDP) increased by 0.7 percent quarter-on-quarter thanks mainly to strong domestic demands which was partly supported by a healthy labor market.

Germany has one of the most stable employment levels in the eurozone. In December last year, its jobless rate fell to 4.8 percent, much lower than the euro area average of 11.4 percent, according to International Labour Organization (ILO) measurements. Endit