**The Spanish economy shrank by 0.1% in the last three months of 2009, making it the last major economy still in recession.**INE, the national statistics agency, said the country’s gross domestic product had contracted by 3.1% compared with the same period a year before.
Europe’s fifth-largest economy has the highest rate of unemployment in the eurozone.
The jobless rate in the country reached 19.5% in December.
“These figures shows the Spanish economy is struggling to catch up with the European monetary union,” said Ralph Solveen, an analyst with Commerzbank.
“Maybe there’s a chance we’ll see some positive quarter-on-quarter growth this year. Even so, Spain’s economy will continue to remain behind the economies of its eurozone neighbours,” he continued
INE said the Spanish economy contracted by a total of 3.6% in 2009.