Job growth extended for 14th month as recovery momentum gathers pace

South Korea reported job additions for the 14th consecutive month in April as economic recovery momentum has been extended despite heightened global uncertainty, data showed yesterday.

The number of employed people came to 28.08 million last month, up 865,000 from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.

The April reading was higher than an on-year increase of 831,000 in March and also marked the most job additions for any April since 2000, when the number of employed people grew 1.05 million.

The country has reported job growth every month since March last year as the job market improved amid the economic recovery.

"The job recovery has continued as exports remain robust, and more industries shifted to digitalised and non-contact business operations," Kong Mi-suk, a senior Statistics Korea official, told reporters.

The finance ministry said the pace of job growth may slow in the coming months due to a high base effect and heightened economic downside risks, such as the war between Russia and Ukraine, and China's COVID-19 lockdowns of Shanghai and major cities.

The South Korean economy has been on a recovery track on the back of robust exports. But it also faces heightened economic uncertainty due to soaring energy prices caused by Russia's military operation in Ukraine and the US Federal Reserve's aggressive monetary tightening.

Jobs data pointed to overall improvements in the labor market, but employment in in-person services, such as accommodations and eateries, fell amid the fast spread of the omicron COVID-19 variant.

Half of the job additions in April were also led by an increase in state-arranged job posts for senior citizens, the data showed.

The employment rate of people aged 15 and older rose 1.7 percentage points on-year to 62.1 percent last month. It marked the highest rate for any April.

The number of economically inactive people - those who are neither working nor actively seeking jobs or people outside the labor force - reached 16.3 million in April, down 376,000 from a year earlier. It marked the 14th consecutive month of an on-year fall.

The jobless rate fell 1 percentage point on-year to 3 percent last month. It was the lowest for any April since June 1999. The number of unemployed people declined 283,000 on-year to 864,000.

By age, job posts for those aged 60 and older grew the most, with 424,000 new positions on-year, due largely to an increase in state-arranged short-term jobs.

By sector, the number of employed people at the health and social welfare service sector grew 230,000, and that in the public administration segment rose 91,000 as the government raised such job posts to prop up the labor market.

The accommodation and food service segment reported job losses for the second straight month due to the fast spread of the omicron variant. The sector saw the number of employed people fall 27,000 onyear in April.

The wholesale and retail sector also reported an on-year drop of 11,000 jobs.