Euro zone unemployment at record low of 6.8% in Feb

BRUSSELS - Euro zone unemployment fell to a record low in February as the economy continued to rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic, even as energy prices rose sharply in the build-up to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The European Union's statistics office Eurostat said unemployment in the 19 countries sharing the euro fell to 6.8% of the workforce in February from a revised 6.9% in January.

The 6.8% rate is the lowest since records dating back to 1998, just before the official launch of the euro in January 1999. Economists polled by Reuters had expected a reading of 6.7%.

Eurostat said 11.155 million people were without a job in the euro zone in February, down from 11.336 million a month earlier.