Today's unemployment figure has surprised many, with most - including the Reserve Bank, expecting a figure well under 7 per cent.

Irwin Industrial Tools had been Wellsford's icon and biggest employer, but with the factory abandoned, the town is moving on.

The Spanish government said that 125,000 people registered as unemployed last month, taking the jobless total to around 17.5 per cent of the working population.

A jobless recovery is expected to be reflected in employment numbers out on Thursday.

Most of the jobs were offering low pay and many had unsociable hours, but the applicants turned up in their thousands.

The number of jobs advertised in major Australian newspapers and online rose by 6 per cent in December, the strongest monthly growth since May 2007.

If some beneficiaries are too dangerous to be dealt with face-to-face, their benefits should be cancelled says Kerre Woodham.

Beneficiaries who undergo a review after a year on an unemployment benefit will not lose that assistance if they can't find work, Paula Bennett says.

The economy's prospects look a lot brighter in the Treasury's latest forecasts than they did when it was preparing the Budget in April.

Treasury says NZ has come through the financial crisis in better shape than most of its traditional trading partners.