Pedestrians donning face masks cross a road in Central, Hong Kong, July 28, 2020. (PARKER ZHENG/CHINA DAILY)
Hong Kong’s unemployment rate dropped in the last three months as the pandemic situation in the city eased, official data showed Tuesday.
The global financial hub’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped to 4.7 percent from April to June, down 0.4 percentage points from the March-May period, according to provisional figures released by the Census and Statistics Department.
The underemployment rate also declined by 0.5 percentage points to 3 percent during the period, adding evidence that the city’s job market was on the road to recovery
The underemployment rate also declined by 0.5 percentage points to 3 percent during the period, adding evidence that the city’s job market was on the road to recovery.
The labor market improved in tandem with the moderating pandemic situation and the gradual relaxation of social distancing measures, said Secretary for Labor and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han.
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“The Consumption Voucher Scheme and the 2022 Employment Support Scheme have also helped,” he added.
For the three months to June this year, the labor force increased by around 5,000 to 3,750,200 from the preceding three-month period ending May. Over the same period, total employment rose by around 17,800 to 3,571,600, while about 178,600 people were out of work, registering a decrease of around 12,800.
While most major economic sectors saw a drop in both the unemployment and underemployment rates, more distinct decreases were seen in the construction sector; retail, accommodation and food services sector; and arts, entertainment and recreation sector.
During the period, the unemployment rate for the consumption- and tourism-related sectors combined fell by 1.4 percentage points to 7.4 percent. Among them, the unemployment rate for food and beverage service activities fell sharply by 2.4 percentage points to 8.6 percent, and that of the retail sector declined by 0.8 percentage points to 6.6 percent.
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Looking ahead, Sun said the labor market is likely to improve further in the near term as domestic economic activities continue to revive, but the extent of improvement will depend on the pandemic situation as well as the global and local financial conditions.
“The various measures rolled out by the government would continue to provide support for the recovery of the local economy,” said Sun. “I call upon the community to continue to work together with the government to keep the epidemic under control.”