Korea adds 194,000 jobs in April, but manufacturing sector posts sharpest fall in six years
Published: 14 May. 2025, 10:52
Updated: 14 May. 2025, 14:21
![Job seekers checking job postings at an employment center in Seoul on Jan. 14. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/05/14/883c3633-63f3-432c-8cd4-46516534c57b.jpg)
Job seekers checking job postings at an employment center in Seoul on Jan. 14. [YONHAP]
Korea added nearly 200,000 jobs in April, but employment in the manufacturing sector, considered the backbone of the economy, posted its steepest on-year decline in over six years, data showed Wednesday.
The number of employed people reached 28.89 million last month, up 194,000 from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.
April's data highlight a continued upward trend in employment following a brief contraction at the end of 2024, when the country saw a net loss of 52,000 positions in December.
Since then, the trend has reversed, with a net increase of 135,000 jobs in January, 136,000 in February and 193,000 in March.
The employment rate for people aged 15 to 64 years increased 0.3 percentage point from a year earlier to 69.9 percent in April, while the jobless rate edged down 0.1 percentage point to 2.9 percent, the data showed.
However, the manufacturing sector extended its decline to the 10th month.
The sector lost 124,000 jobs from a year earlier in April, the largest on-year decline since February 2019, when 151,000 jobs were lost.
The construction sector also shed 150,000 positions last month, marking the 12th month of decline.
In contrast, employment in public health and social welfare increased 218,000, while the science and technology sector gained 113,000 positions.
April's job growth was primarily driven by the hiring of older adults.
Employment for those aged 60 years and older jumped 340,000 from a year earlier. Jobs for people in their 30s went up by 93,000.
However, employment for younger age groups saw sharp declines.
Jobs for those in their 20s fell by 179,000, while employment among those in their 40s decreased by 51,000. Statistics Korea said that the overall population in these age groups has also been shrinking.
The employment rate among people aged 15 and older went up 0.2 percentage point from a year earlier to 63.2 percent in April.
The number of economically inactive people went up by 18,000 to 16 million as of the end of April.
Yonhap
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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