It seems it has risen above 2 million. I couldn’t find any reports in English, just this from El Pais
http://www.elpais.com/articulo/economia/paro/vuelve/superar/millones/subir/29/agosto/elpepueco/20070904elpepueco_1/Tes
I’m unsure of this piece in the article
“Esta subida del desempleo, la segunda consecutiva tras la de julio, duplica la registrada en agosto del año pasado, cuando el paro aumentó en 28.693 personas. En los últimos doce meses, el desempleo acumula un incremento de 44.619 personas (2,25%).”
Does this extract refer to the two months in the past year rather than the two months just gone? It would make more sense. If correct the combined July and August figure of 86,651 is about double last years amount of 44,619.
Would this suggest that the construction slowdown is starting to affect the broader economy? Will the lack of easy credit make it worse?
What interests me is if this is the start of something bad will the electorate blame Zapatero? If it is the start of a significant recession then he will get the blame even though he can hardly be held responsible for the actions of the banks worldwide. But it could mean that the socialists remain out of power for a long time.