1:30 PM Frankfurt – Euro-zone industrial production rose unexpectedly in April. OECD unemployment rate declined in April. The factory employment in Germany increased 2.7% annually. French consumer price annual inflation eased to 2% in May.

Euro Area Industrial Production Grows

Euro-zone industrial production grew by a seasonally adjusted 0.2% in April from March, data released by Eurostat, the statistics office of the European Union showed today.

On a yearly basis, industrial production increased 5.2% as against the 5.8% rise logged in March.

Intermediate goods output increased 5.7% annually and durable consumer goods advanced 5.2%. Non-durable consumer goods gained 3.1% but production of energy declined 4.2%.

OECD Jobless Rate Declines

The jobless rate in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development area decreased to 8.1% in April from 8.2% in March, according to data released today. Unemployment has declined steadily since October 2010.

The unemployment rate in the European Union countries declined to 9.4% in April from 9.5% in March, while in the euro area it remained steady at 9.9%.

The number of jobless persons in the OECD area was 44.09 million in April, compared to 44.13 million in March.

Turkish Jobless Rate Dips

The seasonally adjusted jobless rate in Turkey fell to 9.9% in March from a revised 10% in February, data from the Turkish Statistics Institute showed. The previous estimate for February was 10.1%. A year ago, the unemployment rate was 12.6%.

After adjusting to seasonal variations, the number of unemployed persons fell to 2.62 million in March from 2.7 million in February.

German Factory Employment Up

Employment in Germany''s manufacturing industry increased 2.7% annually to 5.04 million in April, data from statistics office Destatis showed today.

Employment in the rubber and plastic industry climbed 5.3% percent and jobs in the chemical industry rose 3.4% in April. There was a 1.8% annual growth in employment in the feed and food production industry.

The number of hours worked increased 0.8% annually to 638 million in April and the total charges increased 11.1% to €19.18 billion.

Danish Employment Falls

Denmark''s employment decreased in the first quarter, data released by the statistics office showed on Wednesday.

The number of employees dropped a seasonally adjusted 0.4% sequentially in the first quarter. Employment in the public sector fell 0.5% and in the private sector it declined 0.3%.

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