Unemployment in the euro zone rose to 8.9 per cent of the workforce in February from 8.8 per cent in January, defying expectations of a stabilisation and adding to concern about economic growth prospects.
Economists polled had expected the unemployment rate to remain flat at 8.8 per cent in February. The jobless rate has been stuck around this level since March 2003.
Statistics office Eurostat said the unemployment rate for the 25 member European Union was unchanged at 8.9 per cent in February, in contrast to a 5.4 per cent rate in the United States and 4.6 per cent in Japan.
In the euro zone, the highest unemployment rate in February was 10.3 per cent in Spain, followed by 9.8 per cent in France and 9.7 per cent in Germany - the area's two biggest economies.
Poland had the highest jobless rate in the whole of the EU at 18.1 per cent, followed by Slovakia with 16.2 per cent. The jobless data comes after disappointing euro zone business climate and confidence data on Thursday and a record 12 per cent German unemployment rate in March.
Eurostat estimated that in February 12.8 million people were without jobs in the euro zone and 19.1 million remained unemployed in the European Union.
The European Commission has made economic reform to boost job creation in EU its top priority over its 5 year term as rigid labour laws and industrial overregulation hampers job creation in many EU countries, keeping domestic demand in check and stifling economic growth.
A study by 10 leading research institutes showed yesterday that economic growth in the euro zone will slow to 1.5 per cent this year from 2 per cent in 2004 and return to a 2 per cent growth rate in 2006.
The European Commission, which will release its next economic forecast for the euro area on Monday, April 4, has already said it would revise down its economic growth forecast for this year to "slightly below" the 2 per cent it predicted in October last year.