S. Korea to focus on supporting job recovery: senior official
SEOUL, May 7 (Yonhap) -- South Korea will step up efforts to prop up the sluggish job market as the pace of job recovery remains weak amid the fallout of the pandemic, a senior government official said Friday.
The country reported the first job addition in 13 months in March, but it has a long way to go for the full-blown recovery of the job market, according to First Vice Finance Minister Lee Eog-weon.
"Improvements in the job market are necessary for the balanced recovery of exports and domestic demand," Lee said at a meeting on policy directions.
Asia's fourth-largest economy is on a recovery track on the back of robust exports of chips and autos. But the job market and domestic demand remain sluggish amid a flare-up in COVID-19 cases.
The number of employed people reached 26.9 million in March, 314,000 more than a year earlier, according to the statistics agency. It marked the first time that the county added jobs since February 2020.
The country's exports grew 41.4 percent on-year in April, the sharpest on-year gain, to extend their increases to the sixth straight month.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
(END)
-
(News Focus) BOK expected to seek further rate hikes but place more weight on growth: experts
-
Yoon to seek small gov't stance to spur economic growth
-
Having passed major regulatory hurdle for Intel deal, SK hynix eyes economies of scale, sharper competitive edge
-
Pandemic, election to put pressure on 2022 economic policy implementation
-
Midsized shipbuilders' orders bounce back after finalizing their sale deals