Overview
- In July 2026 the Bundesagentur für Arbeit recorded 3.007 million registered unemployed, a rise of 71,000 from June that lifted the unemployment rate to 6.4 percent.
- The BA says summer seasonality — end of training contracts and delayed hiring — explains most of the jump but seasonally adjusted rises in some regions point to deeper weakness.
- Labour demand remains low with 653,000 vacancies and total employment down about 225,000 compared with a year earlier, driven especially by losses in manufacturing.
- The apprenticeship market is under strain as 418,000 young people sought training places by July and tens of thousands remained unplaced despite hundreds of thousands of openings.
- The BA forecasts a roughly €9–10 billion year‑end shortfall from higher benefit and short‑time work costs and unions and regional agencies are pressing for extra placement and training measures.