467,000 jobs lost in April, sharpest decline in over 2 decades amid virus pandemic

SEJONG, May 13 (Yonhap) -- South Korea lost about 467,000 jobs in April, marking the sharpest monthly decline in more than 21 years as the coronavirus pandemic hammered job markets, data showed Wednesday.

The country's jobless rate fell by 0.2 percentage point on-year to 4.2 percent in April, and the number of employed people fell to 26.56 million, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.

The employment rate for young adults -- those aged between 15 and 29 -- also fell 1.4 percentage point on-year to 65.1 percent last month.

The coronavirus outbreak has hit temporary and daily employees hard, with the number of temporary workers plunging by 800,000 in April, the data showed.

April's tumble was attributed to the novel coronavirus outbreak, which has dealt a harsh blow to consumer spending and corporate activities, as people have been urged to avoid going out to help curb the spread of the disease.

Observers said the impact of the coronavirus may appear in the country's jobs data in the second half of the year, given the time lag of one to two quarters for an economic crisis.

kdh@yna.co.kr
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