Germany's unemployment rate rose to 6.4% in July as the jobless total passed 2.99 million

Germany's Federal Employment Agency reported on Friday, 31 July 2026, that the country's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 6.4% in July 2026 from 6.3% in June. The market had expected the rate to hold at 6.3%.

According to the release, the number of registered unemployed increased by 6,000 in July to 2,993,000. Unemployment had fallen by 1,000 in June, and the market forecast for July was an increase of 5,000. Job vacancies stood at 648,240 in June, against 642,810 the previous month.

Germany is the euro area's largest economy, and its labour market is one of the inputs into the European Central Bank's interest rate decisions. The data landed on the same day that France's preliminary July inflation accelerated to 2.1%, and one day after Germany's own preliminary July inflation was reported at 2.8%. A cooling labour market alongside accelerating energy inflation narrows the room for the European Central Bank's decisions.