Spain grows 0.3 percent in fourth quarter of 2013

"The recovery is fragile but it is a recovery," he told a parliamentary hearing.

The Spanish economy returned to growth in the three months to September, putting an end to a recession that lasted over two years, ravaged public finances and left one-in-four workers without a job.

Spain's conservative government is forecasting a 1.3-percent economic contraction in 2013 and 0.7-percent growth in 2014, a pace considered by many analysts to be insufficient to lead to net job creation.

The government, which took power in December 2011, has enacted reforms making it easier to change work conditions and cheaper to lay off staff in a bid to revive the economy.

The International Monetary Fund has warned that Spain faces five more years with unemployment rates topping 25 percent unless it enacts yet more reforms including measures to help firms slash wages instead of axing staff.

But Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy recently said there would be new jobs in Spain in 2014.

Spain's unemployment figures saw a record monthly fall in December with 107,570 fewer people visiting the country's employment offices.

December also saw 64,097 finding work and signing onto the country's social security system. But the social security registered a negative year-on-year figure with 88,000 fewer subscribers than at the end of 2012.