Unemployment stubbornly low, OECD reports

Despite tightening financial conditions and weaker growth outlooks, the jobless rate remained at record lows in January, according to new data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

The unemployment rate for the OECD area came in unchanged at 4.9% to start the year, the Paris-based group reported.

The jobless rate was stable in 12 of 38 OECD countries, and at near-record lows in seven countries including Canada and the U.S.

More recent data shows that the jobless rate edged up in the U.S. in February, but stayed unchanged in Canada.

In the euro area, the unemployment rate remained stable and close to its record low at 6.7% in January. The jobless rate was unchanged or decreased in half of the euro area countries, the OECD said.

Alongside the low jobless rate, the number of unemployed workers declined to 33.2 million in January, it noted.

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