SEOUL, KOREA - The net increase of the May jobs number was below the 300,000 level from a year ago. The number of self-employed has declined for the fifth consecutive month. According to "May 2013 Employment Trend" published by the Korea Statistical Office on June 12, the number of those employed in May was 25,398,000, down 265,000 from the same month last year.
This is in stark contrast with the April figure when the year-on-year net employment number rose in excess of 300,000 in three months. The overall employment ratio for the month was 60.4 percent, down 0.1 percentage point from May 2012.
As for the slowdown in the net jobs number for the month, Gong Mi-sook, manager in charge of employment statistics, said, "The Buddha's birthday holiday that fell on May 17 may have an effect on the decline." The Ministry of Strategy and Finance said the job market conditions have somewhat improved in the second quarter in comparison with the first, factoring in the holiday effect.
The first-quarter jobs number stopped short of increasing 257,000 from a year ago, much lower than those in the third and fourth quarter last year when the net employment rose 506,000 and 342,000, respectively.
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