Euro zone unemployment rate hits record 10.7% in January

BRUSSELS (AFP) - The euro zone unemployment rate hit an all-time record of 10.7 per cent in January, official figures showed on Thursday.

The Eurostat data agency estimated that more than 16.9 million men and women were out of work in the 17-nation euro area in January after the ranks of the unemployed rose by 1.4 million compared with January 2011.

The jobless rate across the wider 27-nation European Union (EU) also climbed over the symbolic 10 per cent ceiling to 10.1 in January against 10 per cent the previous month and 9.5 per cent in January 2011.

More than 24.3 million people were unemployed in the EU in January, an increase of 191,000 from December and of 1.488 million compared with January 2011.