Taiwan's unemployment rate was 5.31 percent in October, slightly down from the previous month, as an export recovery prompted companies to add workers to meet demand for the country's computers, mobile phones and other goods.
The number of people out of work fell to 530,000 in October from 531,000 in September, according to the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics. The rate is down from Taiwan's record jobless rate of 5.35 percent in August.
Taiwan's export orders rose 12.31 percent in October from a year ago and factory production rose 7.4 percent, surpassing economists' forecasts. Taiwan factory closures rose at a slower pace in October while new factory registrations rose.
"Production is better than expected and with the export order numbers, it shows that demand is recovering and that companies are using more of their factories, so labor participation is higher" said Lucas Lee, an economist at Barits Investment Services Corp (倍利投信).
Taiwan last week raised its economic growth forecast for this year to 3.3 percent from 3.1 percent, prompted by an export rebound that's leading the country out of its worst annual slump on record. The government stuck to its projected full-year unemployment rate of 5.2 percent, compared with 4.6 percent last year.
The number of people who lost jobs because of business closures and job cuts rose to 238,000 in October from 232,000 in September, the government said.
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