Hong Kong's unemployment rate down

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, November 17, 2003

Hong Kong's unemployment rate down

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Hong Kong's unemployment rate declined further from 8.3 percent in July-September to 8.0 percentin August-October 2003, according to the latest statistics released by the Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department on Monday.

In the meantime, the underemployment rate also fell, from 3.6 percent to 3.5 percent, according to the department.

Decreases in the unemployment rate (not seasonally adjusted) were seen mainly in the retail trade, restaurants and hotels, amusement and recreational services, real estate, import/export trade, decoration and maintenance, and sanitary services.

As to the underemployment rate, decreases were concentrated in foundation and superstructure construction, transport, sanitary services and manufacturing.

Total labor force decreased by around 7,000, from 3,492,000 in July-September to 3,485,000 (provisional) in August-October 2003. On the other hand, total employment increased by around 8,200, from 3,194,800 to 3,203,000 (provisional) between the two periods.

The number of unemployed persons (not seasonally adjusted) decreased by around 15,300, from 297,300 in July-September to 282,000 (provisional) in August-October 2003. The number of underemployed persons also went down, by around 6,600 from 126,600to 120,000 (provisional) between the two periods.

A government spokesman noted that the unemployment rate continued to decline, as total employment resumed growth on the back of a rebound in economic activity, and as the total labor supply shrank on account of the reduced labor force participation rate, especially for younger persons aged 15-29.

Looking ahead, further improvement in the unemployment rate will hinge on the continued pick-up in economic activity giving rise to additional jobs for the labor force.

The spokesman said that as an indicator of the improving labor market, the number of new vacancies from the private sector registered with the Labor Department continued on an upward trend.The October figure was 22,083, representing an increase of 1.7 percent over the previous month and a 19 percent increase over thesame period last year.

The number of vacancies in the manufacturing and retail industries for October 2003 went up by 11.4 percent and 6.6 percent, respectively, compared to September 2003.

To canvass more vacancies from the small and medium sized enterprises, the Labor Department will launch a direct mailing campaign on its employment service later this month targeting at companies with five to 49 employees, the spokesman said.

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