The unemployment rate in Catalonia stands at 8.2% in March

BarcelonaThe unemployment rate in Catalonia stood at 8.2% in March. This is the result of a new labor market statistic from Idescat (Catalan Institute of Statistics), which also analyzes the Catalan active population and the employment rate. Until now, the unemployment rate was only known once a quarter, when the National Statistics Institute (INE) published the Active Population Survey (EPA).

Now, Idescat's new experimental statistic, following the standards of the European Statistical System, provides monthly estimates of the main figures of the Catalan labor market, as well as related rates. To do this, the body combines information from the Active Population Survey (EPA) with monthly indicators of Social Security affiliation and registered unemployment, which act as auxiliary variables.

From the results of this estimate, it is inferred that there would be 350.4 thousand unemployed people in March of this year, a figure that represents a decrease of 1.3% compared to February of this year and 7.8% compared to March 2025. This value places the unemployment rate for the month of March at 8.2%. It is estimated that the employed population would reach 3,931.6 thousand people in March, a value that represents a monthly increase of 0.7% and an annual increase of 1.4%.

The estimated employment rate in March is 56.5%. Regarding the active population, it is estimated to be 4,282,000 people in March, a figure that represents an increase of 0.5% monthly and 0.6% year-on-year. This value places the activity rate at 61.5% in March.

Prediction for the first quarter

The estimates for the months of January, February, and March 2026 of this experimental statistic allow us to calculate a forecast of the main results of the EPA of Catalonia for the first quarter of 2026. Thus, the unemployed population in this quarter would be around 353,000 people. The employed population would slightly exceed 3.9 million people, representing an annual increase of almost 1.4% and an employment rate slightly above 56%.

Finally, the active population would increase by about 30,000 people in the first quarter of 2026 compared to the first quarter of 2025, placing the activity rate slightly above 61%.