Unemployment up for third quarter in a row, rate stands at 10.37%

Unemployment went up for the third quarter in a row in Catalonia, standing at 10.37% at the end of March according to the EPA survey published on Thursday by Spain's statistics institute (INE).

The number of people out of work grew by 20,000 between December 2022 and March 2023, as the unemployment rate surpassed 10% for the first time in a year – at the end of last year, the percentage stood at 9.91%.

The unemployment rate is also slightly higher compared to one year ago (10.23%).

Yet, the total number of employed people increased by 2,300 compared to December, and by 64,000 on March 2022.

 

Overall, at the end of March, there were 407,200 people out of work – for the first time in six quarters, there are more unemployed workers than a year before.

Yet, at the same time, the total number of employed people has gone up to 3.52 million, the highest number in a first quarter since 2008. Back then, just before the financial crisis of the late 2000s, this figure stood at 3.6 million.

Rate in Spain: 13.26%

Across Spain, the unemployment rate in quarter 1 of 2023 was 13.26%, around 103,800 fewer than three months prior.

Yet, some 368,000 more people are now in the job market compared to a year ago.