Luxembourg, 02/05/2002 (Agence Europe) - According to Eurostat unemployment stood at 8.4% in March 2002 unchanged compared to February. In the European Union (EU15), the unemployment rate stood at 7.6% in March, unchanged compared to the rate in February. Lowest rates were registered in the Netherlands (2.4% in February), Luxembourg (2.6%), Austria (4.0%), Denmark (4.1%), Portugal (4.3%), and Ireland (4.4%). Spain's 12.9% remained the EU's highest rate. Unemployment in the US was 5.7% and the Japanese rate 5.2%. In annual terms unemployment stood at 8.3% in March 2001 in the Euro-zone and 7.6% in the E15. In the last twelve months, the most important relative falls were recorded in the Netherlands (2.6% in February 2001 to 2.4% in February 2002) and Denmark (4.4% to 4.1%). Ireland (3.7% to 4.4%), Austria (3.4% to 4.0%), Luxembourg (2.3% to 2.6%) and Portugal (4.0% to 4.3%) recorded the most important relative increases over the past year. The unemployment rate for males in the euro-zone grew from 6.9% to 7.1%, while the female unemployment rate decreased from 10.3% to 10.1%.