Data from the Federal Labour Office showed that German unemployment rose more than expected in December, adding to signs that weakness in the manufacturing sector is hurting the labor market in Europe's biggest economy.

According to the report the number of people out of work rose by 8,000 to 2.279 million in seasonally adjusted terms. Economists had expected a rise of 2,000.

The jobless rate held steady at 5.0% - slightly above the record low of 4.9% reached earlier this year.

Thanks to the good development on the labour market until the first third of 2019, unemployment and underemployment continued to decline on average for the year. In the further course of the year, the weaker economic situation and a special effect due to testing activities of the unemployment status counteracted a further positive development.

On average in 2019, 2,267,000 people were registered as unemployed in Germany. This reduced the number by 73,000 compared to the previous year.

Underemployment, which also includes persons in labour market policy measures and in short-term incapacity for work, amounted to an average of 3,200,000 persons in 2019. This was 85,000 less than in the previous year.

"The labour market continued to be robust in 2019. Despite a weaker economy, unemployment and underemployment declined on average in 2019; employment rose again.", said Detlef Scheele, CEO of the federal employment agency (BA), today at the monthly press conference in Nuremberg.