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| ▲ This file photo, taken Dec. 27, 2021, shows a job information bulletin board at a university in Seoul. (Yonhap) |
jobless rate-January
S. Korea reports largest job growth in almost 22 years in Jan.
By Kim Soo-yeon
SEOUL, Feb. 16 (Yonhap) -- South Korea reported the largest job growth in nearly 22 years in January in the latest sign that the country's economic recovery has continued despite the upsurge in COVID-19 cases, data showed Wednesday.
The number of employed people came to 26.95 million last month, up 1.14 million from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.
It marked the largest job growth since March 2000, when the number of employed people increased 1.21 million on-year.
It also marked the 11th consecutive month of job additions since March last year.
The sharp rise in job growth was mainly attributable to a low base effect and the ongoing economic recovery, according to the statistics agency.
In January last year, the number of employed people declined 982,000 from a year earlier, the largest job loss in 22 years, due to the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The country's jobless rate fell 1.6 percentage points on-year to 4.1 percent last month.
Asia's fourth-largest economy expanded 4 percent last year, the fastest growth in 11 years, on the back of robust exports.
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