PARIS - THE number of people unemployed throughout the world could rise by up to 25 million by 2010 because of the global financial and economic crisis, the head of the OECD Angel Gurria said on Monday.

'We're heading for a loss of between eight and 10 million jobs in the OECD area... and 20 to 25 million in the world as a whole between now and 2010,' Mr Gurria said on France's BFM radio.

Mr Gurria said that the construction sector would be especially badly hit because its activities had 'stopped in a brutal way,' affecting in particular countries such as Spain and Ireland.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in Paris brings together 30 countries, including all the world's industrialised economies. The group conducts research and publishes economic forecasts.

Mr Gurria also suggested that European countries should spend more in their fiscal stimulus plans to kickstart their economies, considering the size of rescue plans in China, Japan and the United States.

The European Union should 'go beyond' the fiscal stimulus plans already announced, equivalent to around 1.4 per cent of GDP, since 'all the other major countries are going beyond that,' Gurria added. -- AFP