MADRID: Spain's unemployment rate inched lower in the third quarter as the service sector expanded, official data showed on Friday, in welcome news for the minority left-wing government.
The jobless rate from July to September was 11.21 percent, down from 11.27 percent in the second quarter, according to data published by Spain's National Statistics Institute.
The services sector accounted for the vast bulk of the 138,300 jobs created during the period, which coincided with the crucial summer holiday season in the world's second most-visited country.
Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has consistently highlighted positive economic data as a major achievement of his fragile coalition government and to bat away opposition criticism.
The European Union's fourth-largest economy suffered unemployment rates above 16 percent during the Covid-19 pandemic, just as it was recovering gingerly from the damage of the 2008 global financial crisis.
Sanchez hailed Friday's "fantastic data" on X, saying they demonstrated the strength of the labour market and brought the goal of full employment closer.