📉🇫🇷 France's unemployment rate rises to 7.9% in Q4 2025
Oneliner
France's unemployment rate rose to 7.9% in Q4 2025, the highest since 2021, with youth unemployment surging to 21.5%. Economy Minister Roland Lescure described the rise as a "warning" and emphasized the need for continued efforts to stimulate growth and support young job seekers. The increase challenges President Macron's pledge for full employment, as the country faces broader economic implications and remains above the eurozone average.
Key points
- Unemployment in France reached 7.9% in Q4 2025, the highest since Q3 2021.
- Youth unemployment surged to 21.5%, prompting government concern.
- Economy Minister Roland Lescure emphasized the need for growth and apprenticeships.
- The rise in unemployment challenges President Macron's full-employment pledge.
Links
- Le Figaro: Le taux de chômage atteint 7,9% au quatrième trimestre 2025, au plus haut niveau depuis 2021
- Le Figaro: Le chômage en France expliqué en quatre graphiques
- BFMTV: Il atteint son plus haut niveau depuis le troisième trimestre 2021: le taux de chômage en France est en hausse de 0,2 point au 4ème trimestre 2025, à 7,9%
- BFMTV: Le chômage des jeunes remonte à un niveau plus vu depuis 2018: le ministre de l'Économie reconnaît un "avertissement" et dit vouloir se "battre"
Facts
- Unemployment rate in France: 7.9% in Q4 2025.
- Number of unemployed individuals: 2.5 million.
- Youth unemployment rate: 21.5%, up 2.4 percentage points.
- Year-on-year increase in unemployment: 0.6 percentage points.
- France's unemployment rate is higher than the eurozone average of 6.3%.
Quotes
- We won the fight against long-term unemployment, but there is a real challenge with youth unemployment. We must keep fighting. It’s a daily battle. — Roland Lescure
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