An economist proposes reading unemployment alongside the activity rate. With Sweden's rate, Spain would have an unemployment rate of 13%, according to his hypothetical calculations.
The Spanish unemployment rate hovers around 10%, but only measures those seeking employment among the active population. According to La Razón, economist Santiago Niño Becerra suggests reading it alongside the activity rate, which in Spain is around 59%.
In three posts on X from October 13, Niño Becerra starts with an unemployment rate of 10% and an activity rate of 59.3%. He calculates that, with the activity rate of 77.5% he attributes to Sweden, unemployment would rise to 13%.
“In my opinion, the unemployment rate must always be accompanied by the activity rate to be meaningful,” writes the economist.
With the same assumption, he applies the calculation to Greece, with an activity rate of 53.4% and an unemployment rate of 7.9%, estimating an unemployment rate of 11.5%. In Finland, with an activity rate of 69.4% and an unemployment rate of 10.5%, the estimate reaches 11.7%. Both figures are estimates from the economist.
The official data from the Active Population Survey from the INE for the second quarter of 2026 shows an activity rate of 59.29% and an unemployment rate of 9.87%. The unemployment figure matches the harmonised data from August from Eurostat, which places Greece at 7.4% and Finland at 10.7%. The 7.9% figure for Greece cited by the economist corresponds to July.
The INE calculates unemployment by dividing the number of unemployed by the active population. The activity rate compares the active population with those aged 16 and over, and the active population includes both those who work and those seeking employment. Therefore, if activity increases, it is necessary to know how many of the new active individuals would have jobs: if the number of employed does not change, the resulting unemployment would be higher, and to reach 13%, more employment would also be needed.
The EPA references the population aged 16 and over, while Eurostat's harmonised rate refers to individuals aged 15 to 74.
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