Recorded unemployment falls by 48,559 in March

The number of recorded unemployed at the State Public Employment Services fell in March by 48,559 on the previous month.

Over the last eight years, unemployment has risen in March by an average of 11,585.

Unemployment fell by 657 in the first quarter of this year. This is the first time that unemployment has fallen in that period since 1999.

This means that recorded unemployment now stands at 3,702,317, continuing to stand at its lowest level for the last seven years.

In seasonally-adjusted terms, recorded unemployment fell yet again in March, by 30,819.

When compared with March 2016, unemployment has fallen by 392,453. Unemployment maintained the rapid year-on-year pace of reduction seen in recent months, down 9.6%; the largest reduction in the month of March since current records began.

Unemployment among the under-25s fell by 47,712 (down13.7%) over the last 12 months, faster than the general average of 9.6%.

By sector of economic activity, recorded unemployment fell in the service sector by 39,933 (down 1.57%), in the construction sector by 8,830 (down2.44%) and in the industrial sector by 5,659 (down1.66%). In contrast, recorded unemployment rose among those who last worked in the agriculture sector by 1,381 (up 0.75%) and among first-time job-seekers by 4,482 (up 1.43%).
Recorded unemployment fell in 16 of the 17 autonomous regions of Spain, mainly in Andalusia (down 8,689), Madrid (down 6,881) and Catalonia (down 6,325). The only rise was registered in the Canary Islands (up 879).

Number of permanent employment contracts rose by 18.3%

The number of contracts registered in the month of March amounted to a total of 1,732,773, the highest figure on record for a month of March. This represents an increase of 223,892 (up 14.8%) on the same month in 2016.

A total of 178,428 permanent employment contracts were recorded in March 2017, the second-highest figure recorded in this month since 2007. This represents an increase of 27,702 (up 18.38%), four points higher than the increase posted by temporary contracts (up 14.5%).

Permanent employment accounts for 10.3% of all new recorded contracts in this period.

Permanent full-time employment rose by 20.7% year-on-year, it being the type of employment posting the highest growth and six points higher than the growth posted by total temporary employment (up 14.5%).