On March 1, Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities, reported that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in the European Union member states (EU-27) was 9.5 percent in January this year, remaining unchanged compared to December levels. The unemployment rate in the region was eight percent in January 2009. The December 2009 figure was the highest rate registered since the data first started to be recorded in January 2000.
Among the member states, the lowest unemployment rates were recorded in the Netherlands at 4.2 percent and in Austria at 5.3 percent, and the highest rates were seen in Latvia at 22.9 percent and in Spain at 18.8 percent.
Meanwhile, in the US the unemployment rate was 9.7 percent in January 2010. In Japan the rate was 5.1 percent in December 2009.