The standardised unemployment rate for the OECD area was 5.5% in April 2007, 0.1 percentage point lower than the previous month and 0.6 percentage point lower than a year earlier.

In the Euro area, the standardised unemployment rate was 7.1% in April 2007, 0.1 percentage point lower than the previous month and 0.9 percentage point lower than a year earlier. The United States’ standardised unemployment rate for May 2007 was 4.5%, the same as the previous month and 0.1 percentage point lower than a year earlier. For Japan, the rate was 3.8% in April 2007, 0.2 percentage point lower than the previous month and 0.3 percentage point lower than in April 2006.

In April 2007, the standardised unemployment rate in France was 8.6%, 0.1 percentage point lower than the previous month and 1.0 percentage point lower than a year earlier. For Germany, the rate was 6.7% in April 2007, 0.3 percentage point lower than the previous month and 1.6 percentage point lower than in April 2006. For Canada, the standardised unemployment rate was 6.1% in April 2007, the same as the previous month and 0.3 percentage point lower than a year earlier. In February 2007, the rate in the United Kingdom remained at 5.4%, 0.2 percentage point higher than a year earlier. In December 2006, the standardised unemployment rate in Italy remained at 6.5%, 1.0 percentage point lower than a year earlier.