Unemployment in Germany rose to 5 percent in May, from 4.9 percent of the labor force a month earlier. This is according to figures published by the German Federal Employment Office. It is the first time in two years that relatively more Germans are unemployed. The number of unemployed people rose by 60,000 this month, while average economists had expected a decrease of 8,000. The figures have been adjusted for seasonal influences. The employment office notes that the growth is partly due to a different classification of the statistical data. A slowdown in growth of the largest European economy also contributed to the data.
