Seasonal jobs ease Spain unemployment in April

MADRID — Spain's Labor Ministry says the number of people registered as unemployed fell by 46,050 in April with more people finding jobs in the run-up to the summer tourist season.

The ministry said Monday the total number registered as jobless stands at 4.99 million.

Spain has been in recession for the best part of the past four years as the economy battles to recover from the collapse of its once-booming real estate sector.

The ministry said April registered 1.1 million new job contracts, 19 percent up on March and 11 percent up on April 2012.

The country's unemployment rate was a record 27.2 percent in the first quarter.