Euro-Area Unemployment Reaches Record 11%, Led by Spain

Euro-area unemployment reached the highest on record as a deepening economic slump and budget cuts prompted companies from Spain to Italy to reduce their workforces.

The jobless rate in the 17-nation euro zone was at 11 percent in April and March, the European Union’s statistics office in Luxembourg said today. That’s the highest since the data series started in 1995. The March figure was revised higher to 11 percent from 10.9 percent estimated earlier.