European unemployment rises in December

Unemployment in the 16-member eurozone edged up to 10.0 per cent in December after another 87,000 people lost their jobs during the month, the European Union's statistics office (Eurostat) said Friday, DPA reported.

This compared with 9.9 per cent in November. Unemployment in the currency bloc stood at 8.2 per cent in December 2008. The December increase boosted the total numbers out of work in the eurozone to 15.76 million.

December unemployment in the broader 27-member European Union also crept up to 9.6 per cent from 9.5 per cent in November.