French jobless claims at 4-month low in boost for Hollande

FrenchFrench jobless claims fell to a four-month low in January, reflecting the stop-start advance President François Hollande is making in cutting unemployment, reports Bloomberg.

The number of people actively looking for work declined by 27,900 to 3.55 million, the Labor Ministry said in an emailed statement. That’s a 0.8 percent drop on the month.

Jobless claims are still up by about 600,000 since Hollande took office in May 2012, and France’s unemployment rate stands at 10.6 percent, roughly double the level of the U.K. and Germany.

Hollande has repeatedly said he won’t stand for re-election next year if he doesn’t reduce unemployment.

Read more of this report from Bloomberg.