German jobless rate remains at record low in July

Jobless rate in Germany remained at its record low level in July despite a slight increase of unemployment, said Germany's Federal Labour Agency on Thursday.

Adjusted for seasonal swings, the number of people registered as unemployed in Europe's biggest economy increased unexpectedly by 9,000 to 2.8 million in July, ending nine consecutive months of declines.

The jobless rate, a ratio of the unemployed to the total amount of people willing to work, however, stood at 6.4 percent in July, the lowest level since the country's reunification and unchanged from the previous month, data from the labor agency showed.

According to the agency, the slight increase of unemployment in July was mainly due to young people searching for jobs after finishing their occupational training.

"Overall, the labor market is in good shape," said Frank-Juergen Weise, head of the agency.

Recent data showed that German enterprises' confidence rebounded in July as tensions over Greek crisis eased earlier this month when Greece and its creditors agreed to start negotiations on a new multi-billion euro bailout.

Federal Labor Agency said on Wednesday that German companies in nearly all sectors were seeking new staff. Its index measuring companies' willingness to hire increased in July.

A separate report from German Federal Statistical Office on Thursday showed that Germany's jobless rate measured with concept of International Labour Organization (ILO) remained unchanged at 4.7 percent in June, among the lowest in the eurozone. Endit