Japan July Unemployment Rate Down 0.1 Point at 2.4 Pct

Tokyo, Aug. 28 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate in July dropped 0.1 percentage point from the previous month to 2.4 pct, a level unseen in one year, the internal affairs ministry said Friday. The jobless rate fell for the first time in three months following an increase in unemployed job seekers who found work. The number of unemployed people declined 4.6 pct to 1.67 million. Of them, the number of unemployed people who have started searching for work decreased 8.2 pct. The number of people with jobs edged down 0.2 pct to 68.31 million. Meanwhile, the seasonally-adjusted effective ratio of job openings to seekers was unchanged from the previous month at 1.18 in July, the labor ministry said Friday. The number of job seekers rose 0.6 pct, while job openings declined 0.1 pct. Efforts to change jobs for better pay gained momentum. New job listings increased 0.7 pct. Electronic parts and device makers are actively seeking workers amid growing demand for semiconductors driven by the development of artificial intelligence systems, an official said. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]