S. Korea`s jobless rate falls to 3.8 pct in April

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SEOUL, May 13 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's unemployment rate fell in April and the
pace of job losses slowed amid signs that the worst of the economic downturn
might be nearing an end, a government report showed Wednesday.
The jobless rate stood at 3.8 percent last month, down from the previous month's
4 percent, according to the report by the National Statistical Office (NSO).
The April figure was in line with a median forecast in a poll by Yonhap Infomax,
the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency.
Job reduction also eased, with 188,000 positions being eliminated from payrolls
last month compared with a year earlier. In March, the economy shed 195,000
positions.
"The deterioration in labor market conditions seems to be easing," Jeong In-sook,
head of the NSO's employment statistics division, told reporters. "However,
whether this trend will continue still remains to be seen."
The relatively upbeat job market data come amid growing expectations that the
Korean economy, Asia's fourth-largest, may be gaining momentum for a turnaround
from what threatened to be the worst downturn in more than a decade.
Industrial output is rebounding and a decline in exports is easing, according to
recent government data. Stock and currency markets are also rising after
suffering sharp fluctuations last year.
According to the central bank, the nation's economy managed to avert a technical
recession with its gross domestic product rising 0.1 percent in the first quarter
from three months earlier, after falling 5.1 percent in the last quarter of 2008.
Policymakers remained cautious, saying that the job market, consumption and
corporate investment are still in a slump.
"We should wait to see further if the economy has really bottomed out," Finance
Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun told a forum held earlier in Seoul. "The sharp economic
downturn has been easing and its pace is also slowing but a downside trend is
still under way.
According to the NSO, a total of 23.52 million people were employed at the end of
April, while those out of work totaled 933,000, less than in March when 952,000
remained jobless.
The jobless rate among younger people aged between 19 and 29, however, remained
high, indicating that it is much toucher for high school and college graduates to
land a job.
Unemployment for the age group stood at 8 percent, up 0.6 percentage points from
a year earlier, the report showed. The figure was more than twice the nation's
average.
The seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate, meanwhile, was unchanged at 3.7
percent in April.
Job creation is the government's top priority as it needs to boost domestic
demand at a time when the global economic downturn is denting its exports, a key
growth engine for the economy. Last month, the nation's parliament endorsed a
28.4 trillion won extra budget to generate jobs and revive domestic demand.
Finance Minister Yoon pledged that the government will continue to focus on
offering jobs and stabilizing the livelihood of those most vulnerable to the
ongoing economic slump through the additional spending.
kokobj@yna.co.kr
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