Riot police use shields to move away supporters of detained protesters from outside the Labor Ministry in Athens, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013. Protesters from a Communist-backed labor union forced their way into a government building and clashed with police who used tear gas to expel them. Members of the union are protesting planned reforms to the country's pension and income contribution system — part of ongoing austerity cuts demanded by Greece's euro partners and the International Monetary Fund who are keeping the country afloat with emergency loans. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)
Spain's jobless just short of 5 million in January
Published: 08:22:26 AM, Mon 04 February 2013 UTC
MADRID (AP) — The number of people registered as unemployed in Spain is bordering on 5 million as the country remains mired in recession.
Labor Ministry figures released Monday showed the registered jobless figure surged by 132,055 in January to 4.98 million.
Spain is struggling to emerge from its second recession in just over three years with its economy battered by the collapse of the once-key real estate sector.
The country's unemployment rate was at 26 percent at the end of the fourth quarter, up 1 percent from the previous three-month period.
Tags:
ap, spain, science_technology, quarter, monday, unemployment rate, economics, number, percent, country, inflation, economy, madrid, unemployment, recession, business cycle, monetary policy, people, collapse, previous three-month period, labor ministry figures, real estate sector, registered jobless figure
