Unemployment fell 0.05 percentage points from a month earlier to 3.7 percent last month, pointing to a stable job market, government statistics showed on Saturday.
The rate dropped 0.01 percentage points from a year earlier, according to data compiled by the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS).
Last month’s figure was the lowest for November in 18 years, the DGBAS said, adding that, after seasonal adjustments, the figure fell 0.01 percentage points from a month earlier to 3.69 percent.
DGBAS Census Department Deputy Director Pan Ning-hsin (潘寧馨) said that while the pace of economic growth has shown signs of moderating, the local job market remains stable and has not yet felt the pinch of slower economic growth.
The number of people classified as unemployed last month fell by 5,000, or 1.23 percent, from a month earlier to 441,000, while the number of those gainfully employed rose by 15,000, or 0.13 percent, to 11.48 million, with the labor participation rate up 0.03 percentage points at 59.11 percent, the DGBAS said.
The number of first-time jobseekers fell by 3,000 from a month earlier, while the number of those who lost jobs due to business closures or downsizing fell by 1,000, it said.
However, the number of people who lost jobs as a result of the termination of temporary or seasonal contracts rose by 1,000 from a month earlier, the DGBAS said.
The jobless rate for those aged 20 to 24 was 11.98 percent, down from 12.15 percent in October, and unemployment in the 25-29 age group fell from 6.38 percent to 6.31 percent, it said.
The jobless rate among people with a university degree was 5.17 percent, the highest among all education groups, while the unemployment rate for people with a senior-high school diploma and those with a postgraduate degree was 3.54 percent and 2.89 percent respectively, the DGBAS said.
In the first 11 months of the year, the average jobless rate was 3.71 percent, down 0.06 percentage points from a year earlier, while the average labor participation rate rose 0.16 percentage points to 58.98 percent, the data showed.
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