Labour force survey, seasonally-adjusted figures, May 2007

Adjusted for seasonal variations, the LFS shows that the number of employed people increased by 19 000 from February (as measured by the average of the three months from January to March) to May (as measured by the average of the three months from April to June).

Unemployment nearly unchanged

The unemployment rate stood at 2.5 per cent of the labour force in May (as measured by the average of the three months from April to June), compared with 2.7 per cent in February (as measured by the average of the three months from January to March). The 0.2 percentage points decline (4 000 people) is inside the LFS error margin. Seasonally adjusted figures of people registered unemployed with the Labour and Welfare Organisation (NAV) also show a decline of 4 000 in the same period.

Man-weeks worked

From February (as measured by the average of the three months from January to March) to May (as measured by the average of the three months from April to June) the average number of man-weeks (37.5 hours) worked each week increased by 15 000 adjusted for seasonal variations. This is inside the LFS error margin.

Unemployment down in EU15

The unemployment rate for the EU15 fell from 6.9 per cent to 6.7 per cent from February to May. In May, the unemployment rate stood at 6.6 per cent in Germany, down 0.5 percentage points from February. In France, the unemployment rate fell from 8.9 per cent to 8.7 per cent in the same period. In Sweden, the unemployment rate fell from 6.5 to 6.2 percent. In Denmark, the UK and the US the unemployment rate was stable. (All figures refer to seasonally adjusted data from Eurostat .)

Tables:

• Table 1. Employment and unemployment for persons aged 16-74 years, seasonally adjusted, three-months moving average. Absolute figures in 1000 and unemployed persons in per cent of the labour force.