German unemployment rises less than forecast in February, labour office says

BERLIN, Feb 28 (Reuters) - The number of people out of work in Germany rose in February but at a slower rate than expected, federal labour office figures showed on Friday.

The office said the number of unemployed increased by 5,000 in seasonally adjusted terms to 2.89 million. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected that figure to rise by 15,000.

The seasonally adjusted job rate remained unchanged on the previous month at 6.2%, in line with a forecast of analysts polled by Reuters.

"The economic weakness remains visible on the labour market in February," said the labour office's Daniel Terzenbach.

Smarting from two consecutive years of decline in 2023 and 2024, Europe's largest economy is still battling with persistent weakness and structural headwinds in industry.

With these challenges weighing on the job market, the number of unemployed people in Germany could surpass the three million mark for the first time in 10 years this year.

On Wednesday, the Ifo economic institute said German companies are planning to reduce their headcounts across sectors, with the most severe job cuts seen in manufacturing, according to a February survey.