Live News From Spain As It Happens

Spanish unemployment increased for the second month in a row in September despite some signs of recovery in the economy.

The number of unemployed increased 1.2% month-on-month in September to 4,017,763, data released by the Labor Ministry showed Monday. It was slightly less than the 1.6% increase in August that took the total figure to 3,969,661. Joblessness had declined steadily since April.

The unemployment rose by 48,102 persons from the previous month. Year-on-year, the increase was 8.3% or 308,316 persons. In the same month last year, the country saw unemployment rise by 80,367 from the previous month to 3,709,447.

The Secretary General for Employment Maravillas Rojo noted that the Spanish economy is starting to show some signs of improvement. However, that is yet to be reflected in the recovery of employment, which requires a long period of sustained growth, she added. Spain's economy grew 0.2% between April and June, after exiting its worst recession for decades in the March quarter.

Unemployment declined 1.3% in construction, while it fell 0.9% in industry and 2.9% in agriculture during September. The figure rose 2.3% in services.

The ministry official pointed out that the data shows a marked seasonal variation, since the increase in registered unemployment affected only the services sector, while there was a decline in the rest.

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