Unemployment in Denmark falls to lowest level since pandemic began
Unemployment fell an additional 5,300 people from May to June for a total of 108,600 Danes still unemployed, according to the government agency Statistics Denmark.
This latest unemployment rate of 3.8 percent is the lowest since the pandemic began in March 2020, Danish news agency Ritzau reports. Denmark recovered a total of 20,000 jobs in May and June, and the total Danish workforce is calculated at 2,911,000, according to Statistics Denmark.
“A fall in unemployment of up to 20,000 in just two months is completely absurd, and it puts a clear picture of how fast it goes,” Jeppe Juul Borre, chief economist at Arbejdernes Landsbank, told Ritzau.
“Unemployment is centimetres from catching up with what was lost from the crisis,” he added.
The above graph from Statistics Denmark tracks unemployment since 2019. Blue represents out-of-work Danes collecting unemployment benefits (from a union they pay into while employed), green is out-of-work Danes receiving social security from the state, and orange is Danes who are working but still receive unemployment benefits and/or social security (likely due to part-time work or reduced hours).
The unemployment rates for men and women are the same, Statistics Denmark added. While unemployment fell in June across all age groups, 25-29-year-olds saw the greatest gains. That age bracket still has the highest unemployment rate at 6.7 percent.
West Jutland has the country's lowest unemployment rate at 2.7 percent, while Copenhagen has the dubious honor of the highest at 5.2 percent.
Søren Kristensen, chief economist at Sydbank, told Ritzau he expects the labor market will have fully rebounded within the next several months – and it may have already done so in July.
"My bid will be that we will spend July and August to catch up on what was lost, and then around September 1, when the summer is over, then we will stand and be able to see that we have made up for all that was lost from the corona crisis," Kristensen said.
READ MORE: Denmark releases new list of 'in-demand' professions
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This latest unemployment rate of 3.8 percent is the lowest since the pandemic began in March 2020, Danish news agency Ritzau reports. Denmark recovered a total of 20,000 jobs in May and June, and the total Danish workforce is calculated at 2,911,000, according to Statistics Denmark.
“A fall in unemployment of up to 20,000 in just two months is completely absurd, and it puts a clear picture of how fast it goes,” Jeppe Juul Borre, chief economist at Arbejdernes Landsbank, told Ritzau.
“Unemployment is centimetres from catching up with what was lost from the crisis,” he added.
The above graph from Statistics Denmark tracks unemployment since 2019. Blue represents out-of-work Danes collecting unemployment benefits (from a union they pay into while employed), green is out-of-work Danes receiving social security from the state, and orange is Danes who are working but still receive unemployment benefits and/or social security (likely due to part-time work or reduced hours).
The unemployment rates for men and women are the same, Statistics Denmark added. While unemployment fell in June across all age groups, 25-29-year-olds saw the greatest gains. That age bracket still has the highest unemployment rate at 6.7 percent.
West Jutland has the country's lowest unemployment rate at 2.7 percent, while Copenhagen has the dubious honor of the highest at 5.2 percent.
Søren Kristensen, chief economist at Sydbank, told Ritzau he expects the labor market will have fully rebounded within the next several months – and it may have already done so in July.
"My bid will be that we will spend July and August to catch up on what was lost, and then around September 1, when the summer is over, then we will stand and be able to see that we have made up for all that was lost from the corona crisis," Kristensen said.
READ MORE: Denmark releases new list of 'in-demand' professions
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