Eurozone unemployment unchanged at record highJanuary 8, 2014 - 14:39 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Eurozone unemployment was unchanged at a record high for the eighth month in a row in November, data showed on Wednesday, Jan 8, but retail sales made the biggest monthly jump in 12 years, according to Reuters. The jobless rate in the 17 countries using the euro stood at 12.1 percent with 19.2 million of people without work, the EU's statistics office Eurostat said. Unemployment among those younger than 25 was steady at 24.2 percent for the second consecutive month. But eurozone retail sales, a proxy for consumer demand, rebounded 1.4 percent on the month in November after a 0.4 percent decline in October, showing the fastest monthly increase since November 2001. Compared with the same period of last year, the volume of sales rose 1.6 percent after a 0.3 percent fall in October, delivering the strongest rise since February 2008. The monthly expansion was led by a 1.9 percent rise in the volume of sales of all non-food products, except car fuels. The bloc's two largest economies -- Germany and France -- showed a 1.5 percent and 2.1 percent growth in sales respectively in November, despite a deterioration in French consumer and businesses morale in November. In Portugal and Spain sales continued to improve in November with the volume rising 3.1 percent on the month, the strongest in entire eurozone, and 1.9 percent respectively. Related links: Top stories Yerevan has dismissed Turkey’s demand to shut down the Armenian nuclear power plant as “inappropriate”. Armenia will loan 2.9 billion drams to Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh), according to a draft government decision. The Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan has “strongly condemned” Armenia’s decision. Kerobyan has said that for the first time in the history of Armenia, the volume of foreign direct investments amounted to about $1 billion. Partner news | Scholz hopes Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty will be signed this year German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hopes that a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan will be signed this year. Ucom equips four bus stops in Ijevan with free Wi-Fi Ucom now provides free Wi-Fi coverage in smart bus stops in four communities of Ijevan. Armenians stage more campaigns against territorial concessions to Azerbaijan Protesters blocked more roads across Armenia on Friday, April 26 in continuing attempts to scuttle territorial concessions to Azerbaijan. Czech-Armenian military cooperation discussed in Yerevan A delegation led by the Director General for the Industrial Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic visited Armenia. |