Jobless total in Marbella plunges further

From luxurious super yachts to dusty, traditional bodegas, Marbella’s broad appeal is its main strength.

While the accepted image of Marbella as a playground for the world’s elite is largely accurate, one of the resort’s strengths is its ability to offer a good lifestyle to all.

Sure, there are superclubs and high end boutiques to cater for the steady stream of multimillionaires who pull into port all-year-round, but Marbella also ensures that those with more modest means can get by comfortably…

From the quiet streets of San Pedro to the tight, winding paseos of Marbella’s Old Town, the region is also home to thousands of low-income Spaniards, South Americans and other immigrants who certainly do not fit the typical Marbella stereotypes.

Which is why recent official data showing that Marbella’s unemployment rate fell once more in 2017 is to be welcomed. Statistics from the local council show that a total of just 12,443 people were registered as unemployed in Marbella at the end of last year – a figure that is 500 fewer than at the end of 2016.

This lower jobless rate is the best since before the economic crisis. In 2009 the jobless rate in Marbella rose for the first time in years, reaching 14,674 and continuing to increase until 2015.

This most recent data offers further proof that Spain’s economy is beginning to work once more for the less privileged members of society. And wile the rate of unemployment in Marbella remains relatively high at 19.19%, the direction of travel is downwards – and is likely to remain that way for many years yet.