BERLIN, April 22 - Germany's Federal Labour Office will need a cash injection from the government exceeding last year's 5.6 billion euros payment due to rising unemployment, a top labour office official said on Tuesday. Ursuala Engelen-Kefer, a member of the Labour Office's board, told reporters that unemployment this year was likely to average 4.4 million people, 300,000 more than budgeted for. The federal government's 2003 budget assumed no transfer would be required this year thanks to labour market reforms. Engelen-Kefer's comment confirms the government will face trouble bringing Germany's budget deficit below European Union limits this year.
"We have to expect that unemployment in 2003 will be 300,000 higher than budgeted for. The 4.4 million annual average will be much more than in 2002, when the government transfered 5.6 billion euros. We have to expect that the federal transfer this year will be higher," Engelen-Kefer said at a news conference in Berlin.//