ATHENS - Greece's jobless rate dropped to 15.9% in May from an upwardly revised 17.1% in the previous month, data from the statistics service ELSTAT showed on Tuesday.

Seasonally adjusted data showed 737,312 people were officially unemployed, with those aged under 24 the hardest hit. Among those aged 15 to 24, the jobless rate dropped to 33.1% from 40.2% in May 2020.

Greece's jobless rate, which hit a record high of 27.8% in September 2013, has been falling but still remains the highest in the euro zone.

Joblessness affected women more than men, with the respective rates in May at 19.8% and 12.7%, the data showed.

Despite lockdown restrictions to stem the spread of COVID-19, Greece's economy showed resilience in the first quarter of the year, expanding at a faster pace compared to the last quarter of 2020, helped by investments.

The country opened its borders to foreign travellers in May, hoping for a recovery of its key tourism industry after arrivals nosedived in 2020 as the pandemic halted global travel.

The European Commission projects the Greek economy will expand by 4.3% this year with unemployment coming in at 16.3% before easing to 16.1% in 2022.

(Reporting by Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by James Mackenzie and Catherine Evans) ((angeliki.koutantou@thomsonreuters.com; +30 2102214608; Reuters Messaging: angeliki.koutantou.reuters.com@reuters.net))