Joblessness at 14-year low for September in Taiwan

2014-10-24

Taiwan’s unemployment rate dropped to 3.96 percent in September, down 0.28 of a percentage point from last year and the lowest for the month since 2000, according to the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics Oct. 22.

The number of jobless fell to 458,000, down 15,000 or 0.12 of a percentage point from the month before. Employment reached 11.1 million, also down 11,000 from August.

According to the DGBAS, the encouraging data is due to a temporary spike. “With part-time summer jobs coming to an end and students returning to school, the unemployment rate is reverting to a normal level.”

The number of employed increased nearly 120,000 from a year ago, up 1.08 percent, a positive sign that the country’s job market is steadily recovering, the DGBAS added.

For the first nine months of the year, joblessness averaged 3.99 percent, down 0.19 of a percentage point to its best level in six years. The average job search time was 25.77 weeks, also the shortest on record for the period.

With no major economic crisis in sight and prices of oil and commodities set to remain stable, the DGBAS expects Taiwan’s job market to continue recovering, with the average unemployment rate set to sink below 4 percent for the year.

Separately, the DGBAS released the country’s average wages and productivity data for August.

Wages for those in industrial and services sectors averaged NT$44,502 (US$1,464) for the month, up 5.35 percent from 2013. Over the first eight months of the year, average wages were NT$49,043, up 4.53 percent from 2013.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=223157&CtNode=413)