Unemployment rate in Spain reaches 25.02 percent

The unemployment rate in Spain edged up to 25.02 percent in the third quarter of 2012 from 24.63 percent in the previous three months, latest figures released on Friday showed. According to a Spanish National Statistic Institute report, close to 5.8 million Spaniards are currently out of work, as austerity bites into the country's struggling economy. This is the the highest percentage since 1976. The number of unemployment people in Spain rose by 85,000 in the third quarter of the year. Over the past 12 months, nearly 800,000 people lost their jobs. The figures also showed that there are now 1,737,900 households in which no family member is employed. Although this figure only increased by 200 from the previous quarter, it has risen by 312,700 over the past 12 months. Women and young people under 25 are the most affected group by unemployment with 75,500 women losing their jobs between July and September, in comparison to 9,500 men. The unemployment rate for women in Spain is now 25.41 percent, while 24.68 percent of men are looking for jobs. Among workers aged 16-24 the jobless rate towered at 52.34 percent in the third quarter, only slightly down from 53.27 percent in the previous quarter, the institute said.