Tokyo
Japan’s unemployment rate rose to 3.0 percent in August, the highest figure since mid-2017, official data showed Friday, illustrating the pandemic’s effect on the country’s tight labour market. The figure, up 0.1 percentage points from July, is the first time since May 2017 that the rate has stood at three percent or higher, according to the internal affairs ministry data. Separate data compiled by the labour ministry showed there were only 104 job openings for every 100 job-seekers in August, worsening from 108 to 100 in the previous month. Japan was already struggling with the effects of natural disasters and a hike in consumption tax before the coronavirus pandemic crippled the global economy.–AFP
