Croatia joins the EU with record unemployment.
Croatia's unemployment rate, at 18,1%, is the third highest in the bloc; the country has a purchasing power 39% below the European average.
Brasilia – Croatia, which will join the European Union (EU) on Monday (1st), has an unemployment rate of 18,1%, the third highest among Member States, and purchasing power 39% below the European average.
In terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the Croatian economy shrank by 2% in 2012. Croatia, which will be the 28th EU Member State, has 4,4 million inhabitants.
According to data released by Eurostat, the official statistics agency of the economic bloc, the unemployment rate reached 18,1% in April, a figure higher than the European average (11,1%) and the third highest, after Spain (26,8%) and Greece (27%), in a table where Portugal occupies the fourth position (17,8%).
The unemployment rate among young people (under 25 years old) stood at 51,8% in April, also above the European average (23,7%).
Data from the official EU statistics office also indicate that, in 2012, the purchasing power of Croatians was 39% lower than the average of other EU members, with only two countries where citizens were, on average, poorer: Romania and Bulgaria.