French unemployment hit a record high in December, data from Labor Ministry showed late Monday.
The number of people registered as unemployed rose by 10,200 or 0.3 percent in December to reach 3.3 million, the highest since records began in 1996. From the previous year, unemployment increased 5.7 percent.
President Francois Hollande had pledged to bring unemployment down by the end of 2013. He recently announced a "responsibility pact" to address current issues in public finances and economic growth.
Ahead of the release, Hollande said, "Stabilization, which we have achieved, is not enough."
Nonetheless, the labor ministry said the rate of unemployment slowed over the course of 2013. Around 177,800 people joined the jobless register in 2013, versus 283,800 in 2012.
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