Employment in the Eurozone and the EU has shown a mild increase in the second quarter, while Croatia was among the countries with the largest decline in the number of employed individuals, according to data released by Eurostat on Thursday.

The number of employed individuals in the Eurozone increased by 0.2 percent in the second quarter compared to the previous three months when it had grown by 0.5 percent, as calculated by Eurostat based on seasonally adjusted data.

In the EU, employment almost stagnated, as indicated by the new estimates, which were half as strong as the data shown in mid-August. The growth rate in the first quarter also slightly decreased to 0.4 percent.

Croatia, alongside Romania, recorded the most significant increase in the number of employed individuals compared to the first three months of this year, with Lithuania, Portugal, and Malta seeing a growth of 1.3 percent, according to Eurostat data.

Conversely, Estonia experienced the most significant employment decline in the second quarter compared to the previous three months, with a decrease of 1.5 percent. Romania followed with an employment decrease of 0.8 percent, and Croatia closely behind with a 0.7 percent drop in the number of employed individuals from April to June, compared to the previous three months when it had increased by one percent, according to Eurostat's tables.

In Croatia, the number of employed individuals increased by 1.1 percent compared to the same period last year, for the period from April to June. In the first quarter, it had increased by 2.4 percent. Slovenia was the closest to Croatia in the second quarter, with a 1.2 percent increase in the number of employed individuals.

Only Romania recorded a decrease in the number of employed individuals on an annual basis, with a 1.9 percent drop.