The active population rose by 1,200 to over 790,000 in March, according to the official data.

Despite the good news, the Statistics Office said the increase was likely of a seasonal nature, as a similar trend was recorded in the spring and summer of 2012, only for unemployment to spike in the autumn.

The March jobless rate was therefore still 1.4% higher than in the same month a year ago, while the number of people in active employment was down 25,000.

A more detailed breakdown shows that only the unemployment among men dropped, from 13.5% to 13.2%, whereas the rate among women remained unchanged on the month before at 13.7%.

The unemployment rate dropped in all age categories except for the 35-39 years group, where it remained flat.

Moreover, 11 of 12 statistical regions reported a drop in unemployment, with only the Notranjsko-Kraška in south-western Slovenia reporting an increase of 0.2 percentage points to 12.6%.