The unemployment rate in Spain continues on a downward trajectory, bolstered by tourism and strong GDP growth.

Between April and June, the country’s unemployment rate dipped by 1.02 percentage points to 11.27%, according to the latest findings by the National Statistics Institute.

This comes after a slight increase recorded in the previous quarter but confirms a longer trend of declining unemployment. 

Compared to the previous quarter, the number of unemployed individuals dropped by 222,600 this quarter, totalling 2,755,300.

Furthermore, the female unemployment rate decreased by 1.12 percentage points to 12.61%, while the male unemployment rate dropped by 0.93 percentage points to 10.08%.

The services sector experienced the most significant decline in job seekers, with 190,500 fewer individuals unemployed.

Smaller reductions were also observed in the construction industry, as well as in the industrial and agricultural sectors, Euro News reports.

Meanwhile, the number of employed individuals rose by 434,700 during the quarter, reaching a total of 21,684,700. Full-time employment also saw an increase, while part-time employment remained largely unchanged.

“We are heading in the right direction,” stated Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on X.

“Above the noise from the right and the far-right, Spain is moving forward, breaking employment records. Almost 21.7 million people in employment. A new all-time high. We will continue to work to make this the term of full employment.”

Whereas Chief Economist for Spain at BBVA Research, Miguel Cardoso Lecourtois said that the most recent fall in unemployment is “due to seasonality,” as “the second quarter brings an acceleration in job creation as tourism activity progressively improves.

“Job creation will be contingent on the capacity of the tourism sector to continue to grow,” he said.

Challenges in Spain include “bureaucracy” and “higher housing prices, making it difficult for investment to increase the number of rooms,” he added.

Moreover, Spain has recently experienced a surge of protests against mass tourism, despite the economic benefits that the sector provides to the country.

Protesters, particularly in the Canary Islands, Mallorca, and Barcelona, are advocating for restrictions on the number of visitors, arguing that such measures are necessary to protect their quality of life.