Emigration leading to fall in Spain?s unemployment

The number of unemployed people in Spain dropped in November, with analysts saying that emigration was a key factor.

There was a year-on-year fall of 6.2 per cent, the largest annual drop recorded in November since 1998. In further positive news for the Iberian country, the Labour Ministry data confirmed it was the first month of falling unemployment since July.

Analysts pointed to the large emigration figures, saying that they contributed massively towards the fall in unemployment. Parliamentary data revealed that more than 500,000 foreign residents, mostly of working age, quit the country last year.

Labour Minister Fatima Benez said that the country’s economic growth had led to more jobs being created, so the market had experienced a structural change. She noted that job recovery was strong at the moment, and that the country had to continue working towards improvement as there were many Spaniards still out of work, which the government was still working on.

Spain has the fourth largest economy in the Eurozone, and it has now recorded five quarters of economic growth in a row.