Spain feels the pain, at least they get the sun too…

For all the talk of how bad it is in Ireland, the reality is that we are doing comparatively well when looking to some nations in Europe, while there is a large deficit and double digit unemployment, there are others at the table in worse shape.

Spain’s unemployment rate is nearly double that of the EU average at 17.4% a large jump from the 13.9% it was at the end of 08′. It is expected to reach the 19%+ mark. Spain, on its own, accounts for more than half the increase in joblessness in the eurozone during in the last quarter.

Bad loans rose to 4.18% up from 3.87% in January and 1.13% a year earlier.

With over 4 million people out of work it may be time for Spain to review their labour laws, in the eurozone the UK and Spain have the smallest percentage of people working on the minimum wage (Spain is actually the lowest at 0.8%) meaning there is more being spent on labour than necessary to obtain maximum labour utility.

Buy on the bright side, when the sun is shining bad news is so much easier to take.

Comments

  1. Bigby

    expected to reach 19+%!!!!! Farking hell Batman! A friend and I were trying on our gloom-and-doomiest hats and the most we dared predict for Ireland by the end of the year was 15%. And we were laughing with fear at the idea of 15% unemployment.

  2. your up early Bigby!

    anyway, spain has traditionally run a higher level of unemployment than ireland, as well as that they have almost nobody on minimum wage so it would appear to mean that you are either in a good job or no job at all. their construction collapse also makes ours look pretty in comparison. all said, with figures like that coming out i’m beginning to think we are not as bad off as we thought! (although not much better either!)

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