G7 Unemployment Doubles in April

Figures released by OECD today reveal a record rise in the unemployment rate of OECD countries from March to April, jumping from 5.5 percent to 8.4 percent - an increase of 18.4 million people. Even more dramatic was the change in G7 countries. Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom and the United States collectively saw a doubling of their jobless, going from 4.6 percent to 9.1 percent.

The increases for the countries individually vary vastly however. In Japan, for example, the unemployment rate rose just 0.1 percentage points to 2.6 percent, while in Canada and the U.S. the increases were far more significant at 5.2 points and 10.3 points, respectively.