SPAIN recorded its lowest May jobless total for 19 years, according to data published on Tuesday by the Ministry of Labour and Social Economy.
Unemployment stood at 2.3 million- down by 36,323 compared to April, helped by a rise in hospitality jobs ahead of the peak tourist season.
It was also the lowest number for any month since March 2008.
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The May jobless fall though was lower than some forecasters had predicted when a year ago the drop was 57,800.
The reduction was actually the lowest since 2012 at the height of the recession when the total went down by 30,113 people.
Over 12 months, unemployment has fallen by 134,162( 5.5% down).
The hospitality and services sector had the largest reduction in May, with 29,829 fewer unemployed (-1.7%).
New Social Security affiliations soared to 232,000 more than in April(up by 37,000 over 12 months) and are a May record.
Foreigners contributed 111.000 new jobs- nearly half the total- with many positions taken in the hospitality sector.
By age, unemployment among people aged 25 and over fell by 31,585 (-1.4%), while jobless people aged under 25 decreased by 4,738 (-2.8%).
It means that youth unemployment has fallen below the 165,000 mark for the first time, reaching a record low of 164,955.
Registered unemployment decreased in May in all regions compared to April, led by Andalucia (-9,125), Catalunya (-6,900) and Madrid (-3,834).
Unemployment among non-Spaniards fell by 3,673 compared to the previous month (-1.1%), bringing the total number of unemployed migrants to 337,858, which is 4,933 less than a year ago (-1.4%).
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