German unemployment rate ticks down to 6.1% in November

Germany's unemployment rate fell slightly to 6.1% in November, official figures showed on Friday.

The rate dropped by 0.1 percentage point from October, with the number of unemployed people in the country falling by 26,000 to 2.855 million, according to data from the Federal Employment Agency.

Nevertheless, 111,000 more people are unemployed than in November 2024, with the rate up 0.2 percentage points.

"The weakness of the economy persists and the labour market remains without momentum," said employment agency chairwoman Andrea Nahles.

"Unemployment and underemployment decreased in November as is usual for the season," she said. "The number of people in work is stagnating and labour demand remains subdued."

The German economy, Europe's largest, has been languishing in recent years, with the third quarter of 2025 failing to deliver a long-expected rebound.

US tariffs, global trade headwinds and competition from China are all weighing on the country's industrial base.

Vacancies declined in November, although there were signs of some low-level stabilization. An overall 624,000 open positions were registered with the employment agency, 44,000 fewer than in November 2024.

There was also a drop in the number of people placed on reduced working hours under a government scheme aimed at helping businesses through periods of low output.

The November figures are based on data available up to November 12.

According to the Nuremberg-based statisticians, 34,000 people were registered for reduced hours from November 1-24, although it will only be known later how many actually had their hours cut.

The latest available data showed that in September, 209,000 employees received benefits for working reduced hours - 37,000 more than in the previous month, mainly for seasonal reasons, but 8,000 fewer than in September 2024.

Citizens' benefits down

An estimated 986,000 people received unemployment pay in November, 96,000 more than a year earlier.

The number of employable recipients of citizens' benefit - which covers basic income support for jobseekers - was calculated at 3,819,000 in November.

Compared with November 2024, this represented a decline of 122,000 people, the agency said. Around 7% of people of working age living in Germany were in need of assistance.