South Korea Adds 113,000 Jobs as Youth Employment Weakness Persists
South Korea recorded a third consecutive month of employment gains above 100,000 in September, but a lower youth employment rate highlighted an uneven labor-market recovery.
South Korea added 113,000 jobs in September from a year earlier, extending a run of employment gains above 100,000 to a third consecutive month, government data showed Friday. The figures point to continued job creation across the wider economy while also revealing persistent weakness among younger workers.
The number of employed people reached 29.26 million, up from 29.15 million in the same month last year, according to data from the Ministry of Data and Statistics. The overall unemployment rate stood at 2 percent, down 0.1 percentage point from a year earlier.
The headline increase nevertheless slowed from the 184,000 jobs added in August. The latest data also showed a sharp divide by age. The employment rate for people aged 15 to 29 fell 1.1 percentage points on the year to 44 percent, underscoring the difficulty many young people continue to face in entering or remaining in the labor market.
Industry-level figures showed that health and social welfare services led employment growth with 207,000 additional positions. Transportation and warehousing added 54,000 jobs, while finance and insurance gained 32,000. Those increases were partly offset by declines of 97,000 jobs in accommodation and food services, 94,000 in agriculture, forestry and fisheries, and 53,000 in education services.
The employment rate for people aged 15 to 64 rose 0.2 percentage point from a year earlier to 70.6 percent. By contrast, the employment rate for everyone aged 15 and older edged down 0.2 percentage point to 63.5 percent. The statistics ministry attributed that difference to growth in the population aged 65 and older outpacing the increase in the number of employed people.
The number of people outside the labor force increased by 179,000 to 16.19 million. More people cited household duties or education and training as their main activity.
September's figures present policymakers with a mixed picture. Overall hiring remained positive and unemployment stayed low, but job creation lost momentum from the previous month and gains were concentrated in a limited group of service industries. The decline in youth employment indicators adds pressure for policies that connect younger workers with stable positions in sectors capable of sustained hiring.