Spain's unemployment dropped in March, adding to hopes that the economy will stabilize in 2013, data from the Labor Ministry showed Tuesday.
In March, registered unemployment decreased 4,979 or 0.1 percent from the previous month. The number of unemployed totaled 5.03 million.
The ministry said jobless claims declined for the first time since 2008. The improvement in March was driven by the services sector.
Compared to the same period of 2012, unemployment increased by 284,376 or 5.99 percent.
Unemployment in the service sector decreased by 15,822 from the previous month, while it increased by 3,331 in the agriculture sector and by 1,638 in industry. In construction sector, unemployment rose only by 772.
Data from the statistical office published in January showed that the unemployment rate reached a record 26 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012.
The Bank of Spain expects the economy to recover next year and it forecast the unemployment rate to rise to 27.1 percent, before easing over the course of 2014 to 26.8 percent.
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