–Numbers of Lost Jobs, People Looking for Other Openings Both Up from April
–May Unemployment at 2.6%, Up from April’s 2-Year Low Level of 2.5%
By Max Sato
(MaceNews) – Japanese payrolls posted the second straight increase from year-earlier levels in May as Covid restrictions were eased in late March, but materials, parts and products shortages continued to hinder job creation in some sectors, with the unemployment rate edging up after hitting a two-year low in April, data released Friday by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications showed.
The seasonally adjusted average unemployment rate stood at 2.6% in June after improving to 2.5% in April, which was the lowest since 2.4% in February 2020. It has drifted down from 2.6% in March, 2.7% in February and 2.8% in January. It was higher than the median economist forecast for 2.5%. The jobless rate moved in a tight range of 2.7% to 3.0% last year.
The latest figure was below the recent high of 3.1% hit in October 2020 but still well above 2.2% recorded in December 2019, just before the pandemic triggered a global slump.
The number of employed stood at a seasonally adjusted 67.24 million in May, down 140,000 (0.2%) from April, when it rose 270,000 (0.4%) on the month. The number of unemployed rose by 40,000 (2.3%) to an adjusted 1.80 million after falling 30,000 (1.7%) the previous month.
The number of people who left for other openings rose 60,000 (8.2%) in May after rising 60,000 (9.0%) in April and falling 70,000 (9.5%) in March while the number of those who lost their jobs or retired also rose 50,000 (11.6%) after decreasing 120,000 (21.8%) in April and 50,000 (8.3%) the previous month. The number of people who began looking for work was unchanged for the second consecutive month.
Compared to a year earlier, the number of employed rose 170,000 to an unadjusted 67.30 million in May, after rising 240,000 in April, which was the first rise in seven months. The number of unemployed fell 220,000 on the year to an unadjusted 1.91 million in May, marking the 11th straight month of decline after a decrease of 230,000 the previous month.
The job growth was led by the medical/welfare sector and information and telecommunications service providers as well as the real estimate and leasing category. Hotels, restaurants, and bars hired fewer workers, compared to a year earlier, after expanding their workforces in recent months.
Manufacturers trimmed their workforces for the second straight month amid lingering supply constraints aggravated by Covid lockdowns in China. Construction firms also saw a smaller number of employed for the third straight month amid surging producer prices and material shortages.
The wholesale and retail industry continued to shed workers from a year earlier at a high pace while the decline in the personal services and leisure category was smaller now that the government has ended strict public healthy rules.
In the report, the government left its assessment on employment conditions unchanged after upgrading it for the first time in five months in May, saying they are “showing signs of a pickup.” Previously, it had said they were “picking up in some components such as job offers, while weakness remains due to the influence of the infectious disease.”