Finland Times

     Meanwhile, the number of people employed also increased in the 28-member EU by 0.2 percent, according to the national accounts estimates published by Eurostat.

     Eurostat estimated that in the fourth quarter of 2014, 226.7 million men and women were employed in the EU, of which 148.6 million were in the euro zone.

     Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, employment increased by 0.9 percent and by 1.0 percent respectively in the euro area and in the EU.

     Among EU Member States for which data are available, Spain, Latvia, Ireland and Slovakia recorded the year-on-year highest increases while Portugal, Cyprus, Poland and Italy recorded the highest decreases.