Unemployment figures across the world appear to be levelling off.

Global unemployment was 8.8% in October, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), up by 0.1% compared to September 2009 and up by 2.3% compared to October 2008.

The OECD said that the unemployment rate was 9.8% in the Euro area, consistent with the previous month, but an increase of 1.9% compared to the same time in 2008. Spain has recorded the highest level of unemployment in the Euro region for the month at 19.3%. Germany has seen a drop of 0.1% compared to the month before, bringing unemployment down to 7.5%.

In the rest of the world, Japan’s unemployment rate has fallen for the fourth month to a low of 5.1%, though this figure is up by 1.3% compared to the same period in 2008.

This week the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has also released the UK jobless figures, which showed an increase of 21,000 between August and October 2009 to 2.49 million. Though still on the ascent, it was the smallest rise since the March to May 2008 period.

UK unemployment is still below the OECD’s Euro figure and now stands at 7.9%.

Commenting on the UK labour market statistics, David Frost, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said: “Thanks to business, which has made Herculean efforts to keep and train staff during the worst recession in decades, these unemployment figures are lower than expected.

“Only business has the capacity to drive our economy out of recession. The current over-reliance on public sector employment and the worrying gap in pay trends must end to provide the conditions for a sustainable recovery.”

In the ONS labour market statement it announced a rise in average earnings (excluding bonuses) of 1.7% for the period – with public sector average earnings growing at a much higher 2.7%. This is perhaps surprising news given the continued economic downturn and rise in unemployment.

The Irish government meanwhile has announced that its economy has now exited the recession, of which it counted itself among Europe’s worst victims. The Irish statistics agency said that gross domestic product (GDP) rose by 0.3% for the third quarter of 2009.