Taiwan’s unemployment rate rose for a third consecutive month last month, reaching its highest level in a year as fresh graduates entered the labor market and the impact of US tariffs rippled through the economy, the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said yesterday.
The jobless rate climbed to 3.45 percent, up 0.05 percentage points from July, while the seasonally adjusted figure edged up 0.02 points to 3.35 percent.
“Despite the uptick, the labor market remains relatively stable and the unemployment rate is not particularly high,” DGBAS Census Department Deputy Director Tan Wen-ling (譚文玲) said in Taipei.
Photo courtesy of the Tainan City Government
However, signs of strain are emerging. The number of underemployed — those working fewer than 35 hours a week for economic reasons, but willing to work more — rose to 121,000, the highest this year, the agency’s report showed.
More companies have also turned to furloughs to cope with tariff-driven slowdowns, Tan said, noting that underemployment and furloughs are not reflected in the official unemployment rate.
Washington on Aug. 7 imposed a 20 percent tariff on Taiwanese goods, following earlier levies on autos, auto parts, and steel and aluminum.
Manufacturers of machine tools, auto parts, metals and bicycles are bearing the brunt, while technology firms tied to the global artificial intelligence hardware supply chain continue to benefit from robust demand.
Overall, the number of unemployed rose by 6,000 to 415,000, driven by layoffs from business closures or cutbacks, as well as more people entering the job market or leaving unsatisfactory positions, the DGBAS said.
Unemployment remains concentrated among the young and highly educated. University graduates face an unemployment rate of 4.68 percent, compared with 3.17 percent for those with a master’s degree and 3.03 percent for senior-high graduates.
Jobless rates peak among the 20 to 24 group at 12.08 percent and 8.71 percent for people aged 15 to 19, as they are struggling to find their first jobs, reflecting graduation-season pressures, the agency said.
By contrast, the jobless rate is 5.92 percent for those aged 25 to 29, and 3.26 percent for the 30-to-34 group.
The impact of graduation season typically fades this month, when unemployment declines after graduation pressures subside, Tan said.
However, if unemployment continues to rise, it could indicate that tariffs are starting to bite.
“We hope the impact will not worsen,” she said.
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