The unemployment rate in Portugal has dropped to 14.3%, down 2.6% in the space of one year.
This was one of the EU’s largest decreases in unemployment.
Nevertheless, the current rate is the fifth highest of the 28 EU countries.
Rates are higher in Greece, Spain, Croatia and Cyprus, while the lowest unemployment remains in Austria and Germany.
The average rate in the EU was 10.3% in May 2014. Eurostat estimates that there are more than 25 million men and women in the EU who have no jobs. But since May of last year, some 1.36 million people have found some sort of employment.
Portuguese youth fared a bit better as well, with the rate dropping in May this year to 34.8%, down from 39% in May 2013.
This is well above the average youth unemployment in the EU which stands at 22.2%, leaving more than 5 million people under the age of 25 without work.
The rates in Spain for both adult and young people have remained precariously high without budging over the year. Adult unemployment is running at 25%, down from 26% in May 2913. Young people remain seriously disadvantaged, with 54% unemployed now compared to 55.5% last year.
While there are some 135,000 Portuguese under 25 years seeking work, there are 855,000 in Spain.
