Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy on Wednesday said his government would not relax its efforts to turn around the Spanish economy.

"The first objective of this government is to turn around this situation... No green shoots or passing clouds or early spring, the reality is terribly hard," Rajoy said during his first speech on the state of the nation since taking office in December 2011.

"To those who are asking for relaxation, not a minute of relaxation or calmness. This has just started. The road to creating jobs is a long one," he added.

(Reporting by Emma Pinedo and Julien Toyer; Editing by Clare Kane)