France's jobless total fell by 19,900 in April, declining for a second month in a row and offering a boost to President François Hollande in his fight to bring down unemployment, reports Reuters.
The number of registered jobseekers in mainland France stood at 3,511,100 at the end of last month, down 0.6 percent over one month and by the same rate over one year, the Labour Ministry said in its monthly jobless report.
The ministry said it was only the second time in five years France had seen two consecutive months of declines after the steepest monthly fall in 15 years in April, offering evidence that the labour market may at last be turning a corner.
Hollande has said that he would not run for a second term in presidential elections due in just under a year unless he made headway against bringing down unemployment, which has been stuck at about 10 percent for four years.
The deeply unpopular leader aims to fire up job creation with a labour reform his Socialist government is forcing through parliament in the face of opposition from leftwing lawmakers - including from within their own party - and waves of street protests and strikes.