Unemployment in France hits new high

The number of unemployed people in France has climbed to new record levels last month, offical data shows.
Around 3.2 million people are out of work in France, a 11.5 percent increase from last year, the labour ministry said on Thursday.
The number of registered job seekers in mainland France rose by 1.2 percent in March, marking a 23rd straight monthly rise and reaching the worst level since records began in January 1996.
With a wave of industrial layoffs taking effect, the March jobless figure of 3.2 million not only soared further above the 3 million level hit last August but beat the previous all-time record of 3.1 million set in January 1997.