Germany books record low unemployment despite political woes

FRANKFURT AM MAIN: Unemployment in Germany marked a record low since the country's 1990 reunification in November, official data showed Thursday, with the economy in rude health as politicians struggle to form a government.

Joblessness in Europe's largest economy fell to 5.3 percent, according to figures from the federal labour agency (BA), 0.1 percentage points lower than the previous month's level and continuing a months-long trend of inching improvements.

In seasonally-adjusted terms, more representative of underlying developments, the rate held steady at 5.6 percent -- in line with analysts' expectations.

Berlin politicians' failure to strike a deal on a governing coalition -- with three-way talks between Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives, the liberal Free Democrats and ecologist Greens fizzling out this month -- has yet to sap economic performance or confidence among businesses and consumers.

With massive support from the European Central Bank still in place and demand from abroad for German goods buoyant, economists and government have in recent months upgraded their economic growth forecasts for 2017 and the coming years.

Merkel was so confident of future growth that she vowed during the summer election campaign to attain "full employment" -- or an unemployment rate of around 3.0 percent -- by 2025.

Presently only one German state, wealthy Bavaria in the country's southeast, can boast of such low joblessness.