The number of jobless in January increased by 70,744 people, or 2.5% compared to December 2022, leaving a total of 2.91 million people out of work, a report from the ministry said. Traditionally, the number of unemployed people has tended to rise in January as temporary hires over the holiday season in the retail and tourism industries are laid off.
The number of unemployed people in December had fallen 1.5%.
"This increase has been more moderate than the historical
average and other recent months, which shows a more stable
labour market," Labour Minister Yolanda Diaz said in a post on
Twitter.
In January 2008, the total number of unemployed people was
at 2.26 million.
The low level of unemployment in Spain is an encouraging
sign as the country's economy is set to slow down this year
after a higher-than-expected 5.5% growth last year.
Spain gained 57,726 net formal jobs in January to 20.3
million jobs, after a December job loss, a separate report from
the Social Security Ministry showed.
The number of unemployed youth, the Spanish labour market's
weak spot, rose 4% in January from December, but was at a record
low for January - at 203,504 people.
(Reporting by Marta Serafinko in Gdansk, editing by David
Latona and Bernadette Baum)
