Turkey's unemployment rates below European average

ANKARA

At 9.7 percent, Turkey's unemploymentrate remains below European Union (EU) and Eurozone averages of 10.9 percent and 12.1 percent, respectively, as of October 2013.

Europe continues to struggle with unemployment amid high public debt and budget deficit problems, since the 2007 global financial crisis.

The austerity measures implemented for financial stability have contributed to an increase in unemployment rates across the 28 EU members states and 17 member Eurozone.

Greece ranked as the country with the highestunemployment rate of 27.4 percent as of October 2013, followed by Spain with 26.7 percent and Croatia with 18.4 percent, according to data collected by an AA correspondent from the European Statistical Office (Eurostat) and Turkey Statistical Institute (TUIK).

The lowest rates belonged to Austria with 4.8 percent, Germany with 5.2 percent and Luxembourg with 6 percent.

Meanwhile,Turkey's youth unemployment rate of 19.3 percent was also lower than that of 21 EU countries. The rate was recorded at 23.5 percent in the EU and 24.2 percent in the Eurozone.

Spain and Greece had the highest unemploymentamong youths at 57.4 percent and 54.8 percent, respectively.

The countries with the lowest rates were Germany with 7.6 percent, Austria with 9.1 percent and the Netherlands with 11.6 percent.

The unemployment and youth unemployment rates for Turkey, the EU and Eurozone as of October 2013 (those marked with are *according to September 2013 figures).