Advertisement

Unemployment falls in 'best ever' data

Fiona Govan
Fiona Govan - [email protected]
Unemployment falls in 'best ever' data
Jobless queue outside a social security office in Madrid. Photo: Sebastien Berda / AFP

Unemployment figures continued to fall across Spain in March in what was hailed as best results in 13 years, bringing a boost to the ruling PP in an important election year.

Advertisement

Registered jobless continued its two year downward trend with 60,214 Spaniards officially coming off the unemployment list, according to data published by the Ministry of Employment on Monday.

The report was hailed as providing the most positive data for a month of March since such records began 13 years ago.

It brings the drop in the official number of jobless to 343,937 since March 2014 leaving the total of unemployed at  4.45 million across Spain.

The data showed that 160,579 new people had registered as social security contributors during the third month of the year.

However, the positive figures did not extend to youth unemployment with data showing that jobless among those aged under 25 years-old had risen slightly to 0.78 per cent on the month earlier.

The unemployment fall was noticeable in 16 of Spain’s 17 semi-autonomous regions and only went up in the Basque Country.

During a rare interview with RNE on Monday, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy described the latest data as "sensational" and said it was a "sign of hope" for the jobless that the economy was improving.

 

 

More

Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.

Please log in to leave a comment.

See Also