In May 2012, the jobless rate was 7.2%, the data showed.
An estimated 720,000 people were unemployed and looking for work in May, up from 712,000 a month earlier. Male jobless rate was 8.1%, while female unemployment reached 6.7%.
The figures refer to people aged between 15 and 74 and are based on the definition recommended by the International Labor Organization.
The unemployment rate for people aged 25-74 was 6.1% in May, the data showed. The latter category made up for 75.1% of the total jobless people in the fifth month of 2013.