Unemployment is a deeply (36) sensitive political issue for Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. Back in 1998 he was (37) for his first term on a promise that the jobless count would be brought down to (38) . He (39) on that and now the official unemployment figure is above five million, the first time since the great depression of the 1930s, which brought the Nazis to power. And to make matters (40) , the official figures may greatly (41) the real extent of the problem. Once those on government training schemes and the like are (42) the actual number of people looking for work could be as high as (43) . The German economy has yet to fully recover from the boom and bust that followed reunification a decade ago. (44) , where work has shifted to new manufacturing centers such as Chine. But, despite the latest unemployment figures, there are some recent signs of economic improvement in what is still by far Europe’s largest economy. (45) . Meanwhile businesses are more optimistic than they were a couple of years ago. Welfare benefits have been reduced. Companies have been re-organized to cut costs. (46) The German economy is growing again: though slowly, and it is seen as one of the more robust in the European Union.