MADRID – The National Statistics Institute says Spain’s unemployment figures have shot up from 21.5 percent to 22.8 percent in the fourth quarter. The figure means that 5.3 million people are unemployed in Spain.
The figure was lower than the 5.4 million estimated by the finance minister Thursday.
Spain already has the highest unemployment rate in the 17-nation eurozone. The new conservative Popular Party government pledges new labor reforms to try to halt further job losses.