Job growth extended to 4th month in June amid economic recovery

By Kim Soo-yeon

SEOUL, July 14 (Yonhap) -- South Korea reported job additions for the fourth straight month in June, data showed Wednesday, in the latest sign the job market is on a recovery path amid an economic recovery.

The number of employed people reached 27.6 million last month, 582,000 more than a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.

The June additions were lower than an on-year increase of 619,000 the previous month.

The country has reported job additions since March when 314,000 jobs were added on-year, the first job growth in 13 months.

The job market has shown signs of improvement due to a lower base effect and the economic recovery, according to the statistics agency.

But the fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic is widely expected to deal a blow to jobs in sectors providing face-to-face services as the toughest-ever virus curbs will likely dampen domestic demand.

The country on Monday implemented Level 4 social distancing rules, the highest level in its four-tier scheme, in the greater capital area for two weeks in a bid to stem spiking virus cases.

The country's jobless rate fell 0.5 percentage point on-year to 3.8 percent last month.

sooyeon@yna.co.kr
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