For the first time since the financial crisis and a deep recession swept across the country, even fewer, 1,847, registered as unemployed compared to the corresponding period a year earlier.

Both Statistics Sweden (Statistiska centralbyrån – SCB) and the Public Employment Service’s figures indicated that the job market has turned in the spring. The previously rampant unemployment did not turn out as ominous as it had earlier appeared it would be.

Admittedly, many of the unemployed are in various unemployment programs. They are still about 250,000 people in those programs. There were about 77,000 more people in those programs last week than the same period last year. However, even that figure has recently dropped steadily from week to week.

Unless the debt crisis in Greece and other eurozone countries spooks companies, it appears the figure of companies giving advance layoff notices will be down to their lowest levels for a very long time. So far in May, only 726 people have been given advance layoff notices, compared with 8,700 in May 2009 and 3,750 in April.

Last week, employment offices across the country received notice of 12,511 new job vacancies, an increase of 319 compared with the week before and 6,123 more than the corresponding week last year.