Japan`s March jobless rate at 4.8%, fastest rise since 1967

TOKYO, May 1 Kyodo -
Japan's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in March grew at the fastest pace
in more than 40 years to hit a four-year high of 4.8 percent, with a record
number of people being laid off on the back of the deepening global recession,
the government said Friday.
The rate rose by a more-than-expected 0.4 percentage point from the previous
month, the most since March 1967, when it marked a 0.5 percentage point
expansion, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
An official at the ministry, however, said that the pace of the rise is
''effectively the sharpest'' because in 1967 the figures were calculated under
relaxed conditions that were ''completely different'' and cannot be compared
with the ministry's current job figures.
In fiscal 2008, the unemployment rate averaged 4.1 percent, up from 3.8 percent
in the previous fiscal year, as the economic crisis has taken a heavy toll on
almost all kinds of business from last autumn.
The average rate for the year through March 31, 2009, was equal to the rate in
fiscal 2006. It climbed for the first time since fiscal 2002.
In March, the number of jobless people increased a record 670,000 from a year
earlier to 3.35 million for the fifth straight monthly expansion, of which 1.06
million had been laid off, up 500,000 from the previous month, also the largest
ever.
This is the first time since October 2005 that the number has topped 3 million.
A preliminary report released by the ministry showed those who voluntarily quit
their jobs numbered 1.03 million, up 80,000.
The March headline reading of 4.8 percent, the highest since August 2004,
compares with the average market forecast of 4.6 percent in a Kyodo News
survey.
The jobless rate for men grew 0.5 percentage point to 4.9 percent, while that
for women increased 0.3 point to 4.7 percent.
Kaoru Yosano, economic and fiscal policy minister, told reporters that the
government is trying to improve the labor market through a set of recent
measures designed to combat the crisis.
But not many economists believe there will be an improvement in employment
conditions anytime soon, despite the steps.
Norio Miyagawa, an economist at the Shinko Research Institute, said the jobless
rate is likely to be on an upward trend through the first half of 2010 and it
could surpass 6 percent.
''Compared with the United States, for example, Japan's employment adjustment
is not so drastic,'' Miyagawa said. ''More job cuts are expected in the coming
months.''
''It is inevitable that job figures further worsen as they normally lag far
behind economic trends,'' he said.
The labor ministry said Friday that a total of 207,381 nonregular employees in
Japan, mainly temporary workers, have lost or are likely to lose their jobs
between October and June this year, up 8 percent from a similar survey in
March.
The number of regular employees who are expected to lose their jobs during the
same period totals 18,315, representing a 46.5 percent jump from the previous
survey, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.
Separate data, released by the labor ministry, said the ratio of job offers to
job seekers in March was at a seasonally adjusted 0.52, down from 0.59 in the
previous month. It extended the slumping streak for the 10th consecutive month.
The latest ratio -- meaning that there were 52 jobs available for every 100 job
seekers -- was the lowest since April 2002.
The number of job offers dropped 7.9 percent and that of job seekers rose 4.6
percent, according to the data.
The number of new job offers dropped 22.3 percent, after a 30.1 percent plunge
in February.
By industry, the number of new jobs continued to fall sharply in both
manufacturers, and information and communications services, down 55.9 percent
and 36.9 percent, respectively.
==Kyodo