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Korea’s relatively rapid economic recovery has stoked optimism that the nation will once again start creating jobs at a rapid clip. But the country’s jobless rate actually climbed in June, marking its first increase in five months, according to data released yesterday by Statistics Korea.
The government organization said the unemployment rate hit 3.5 percent last month, up from 3.2 percent in May as programs previously enacted by the government to create jobs ended. The job scene was particularly grim for young adults, with the unemployment rate for those between the ages of 15 and 29 jumping to 8.3 percent in June from 6.4 percent a month earlier.
The overall uptick raises concerns that the job market will remain sluggish in the near term despite a faster-than-expected economic rebound. The number of newly employed tumbled to 314,000 from 586,000 in May, when the government’s employment programs were in full force. Those programs began to wind down in June, meaning many people found themselves unemployed. Still, the June figure of around 300,000 is solid from a historical perspective, officials said. And the private sector actually added a significant number of new jobs, helping offset the decline in the number of government positions.
“Private sector employment improved, and it is expected to be better in July and August,” said Yoon Jong-won, director of economic policies at the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.
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