Eurozone jobless rate falls to lowest level in over 4 years

BRUSSELS – Official figures show that unemployment across the 19-country eurozone has fallen to its lowest rate in a little more than four years.

Statistics agency Eurostat says Thursday that the unemployment rate fell to 10.5 percent in November from 10.6 percent the previous month. The rate has not been lower since October 2011 when the region was mired in a debt crisis that raised questions over the future of the single currency bloc.

The statistics agency says the number of unemployed fell by 130,000 people during the month, taking the total down to 16.9 million people.

However, in a sign that the recovery is patchy, Eurostat also said retail sales during the month fell 0.3 percent. That's the third straight monthly decline.