The unemployment rate fell slightly last year in Spain up to 12.87% of the active population at the end of December, compared to 13.3% at the end of 2021, according to official figures published this Thursday.
According to the National Statistics Institute (INE), 3.02 million people were registered as unemployed in the fourth largest economy in the euro zone as of December 31, 79,900 less than a year ago.
However, according to the INE, the unemployment rate experienced an increase compared to the end of September. In the fourth quarter, an additional 43,800 people were registered as unemployed, raising the number of job seekers above the symbolic threshold of three million.
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This rebound, which occurs in a context of deteriorating world economy, mainly affected services (+39,700 unemployed) and construction (+13,600). Sectors such as agriculture, however, showed the opposite trend (-13,700 unemployed).
The regions most affected by the slight rise are the Balearic Islands (+29,700 unemployed), Catalonia (+21,900) and Madrid (+10,600). On the contrary, the situation improved in the Canary Islands (-35,200) and in the Region of Murcia (-11,700).
The unemployment rate registered at the end of 2022 was lower than that reached before the COVID-19 pandemic (3.19 million at the end of 2019, 13.8% of the active population).
This confirms the improvement in the labor market in the country, after unemployment reached 16.13% of the active population at the end of 2020, linked to the strong impact of the health crisis, particularly in the tourism sector, a pillar of the economy Spanish.
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For several months now, many companies have even complained about recruitment difficulties, especially in the hotel industry, agriculture or construction, although the Spanish unemployment rate continues to be one of the highest in the OECD.
This phenomenon led the government to adopt a reform in July to facilitate the issuance of work visas and the regularization of undocumented immigrants to compensate for the lack of workers in the sectors under greatest pressure.
According to the executive, the unemployment rate is expected to decrease slightly in the coming quarters, reaching 12.2% of the active population by the end of 2023, despite the economic slowdown caused by strong inflation.
Source: AFP
Source: Gestion
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