In December, the key indicator of the European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) and the Institute for Employment Research (IAB) fell by 0.1 to 98.9 points.
Enzo Weber, head of forecast at IAB, explained that European public employment services show no signs of a labour market collapse, but unemployment will continue to rise.
In December, the unemployment component of the labour market outlook dropped by 0.2 points to 97.7. Meanwhile, the employment outlook component rose by 0.2 points to 100.2.
Iceland, Lithuania and Austria face the worst outlooks for the coming three months, with barometer ranging between 95 and 96.6 points in the said countries. Austria is forecast to record the highest unemployment growth, while Lithuania is forecast to have the largest decrease in employment.
Only Bulgaria, Cyprus, Poland and Switzerland showed an increase in the European Labour Market Barometer in December. No major fluctuations are expected in the other countries, and the prospects of labour markets remain uncertain.
The barometer is based on a monthly survey among 17 local and regional employment services. The IAB and PES project for a Europe-wide early labour market indicator began in June 2018.
