German unemployment rises by more than expected in May

BERLIN, May 28 (Reuters) - The number of people out of work in Germany rose at faster pace than expected in May, labour office figures showed on Wednesday, putting pressure on a new government battling to wrench Europe's largest economy from a prolonged downturn.

The office said the number of unemployed - already at a decade-long high in April - increased by 34,000 in seasonally adjusted terms to 2.96 million. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a rise of 10,000.

Economic malaise has put pressure on the job market even against a backdrop of long-term labour shortages, adding to pressure on conservative Chancellor Friedrich Merz who has vowed to pull the economy out of two years of decline.

The seasonally adjusted employment rate remained unchanged in May on the previous month at 6.3%, in line with a forecast by analysts in a Reuters poll.

"The labour market is not getting the tailwind it needs for a trend reversal. Therefore, we expect unemployment figures to continue to rise in the summer," said labour office head Andrea Nahles.