— Japan Oct SA Jobs -180,000 M/M (-0.3%) Vs Sep +410,000
— Japan Oct SA Unemployed +50,000 M/M (+1.5%) Vs Sep -50,000
— Japan Oct NSA Jobs +150,000 Y/Y, 2nd Rise In Row; Sep +140,000
— Japan Oct NSA Unemployed -100,000 Y/Y; 5th Drop In Row; Sep -230,000
— Japan Oct Job Offers-To-Seekers Ratio 0.56 Vs Sep 0.55

TOKYO (MNI) – Japan’s unemployment rate rose to 5.1% in October
from 5.0% in September, marking the first rise in four months, data from
the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications showed on Tuesday.

Today’s data indicated that a gradual improvement in the labor
market seems to be moderating. The number of employed people fell
180,000 (-0.3%) from a month before, posting the first m/m drop in two
months after rising 410,000 (+0.7%) in September.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for October came in
higher than the median forecast for 5.0% in an MNI survey of economists.

The October jobless rate was still below the record high of 5.6%
hit in July 2009, but still well above the 4.2% rate seen at the start
of 2009.

In October, the number of unemployed rose by a seasonally adjusted
50,000 from the previous month, or 1.5%, to 3.34 million, posting the
first m/m rise in four months after falling by 50,000 (-1.5%) in
September.

The number of payroll jobs surged by a seasonally adjusted 380,000
month-on-month, or 0.7%, to 55.03 million, showing the second m/m rise,
rising 410,000 m/m in September and falling 20,000 in August.

On an unadjusted basis, the number of employed people rose by
150,000 to 62.86 million in October, marking the second consecutive
year-on-year rise after rising 140,000 in September. Employment fell
180,000 in August.

The unadjusted number of jobless workers was down by 100,000 in
October from a year earlier at 3.34 million, marking the fifth
consecutive year-on-year decline, after falling 230,000 in September.

Job losses remained largely in construction, personal services and
amusement services, scientific research, professional and technical
services as well as transport and postal activities.

Meanwhile, job creation was led by medical, health care and welfare
(the largest contributor); accommodations, eating and drinking services;
wholesale and retail trade; manufacturing; information communications.

Employment in the manufacturing sector posted the second straight
y/y gain in October despite the fifth consecutive m/m drop in industrial
production in the month.

The Japanese economy has moved out of the sharp contraction seen
early last year, but the jobless rate is a lagging indicator that
typically follows economic movements after a delay of several months.

Economists forecast that the recent labor market improvement is
expected to pause for a while because possible falls in automobile
output in October-December are likely to make some firms cautious about
hiring additional workers.

The Bank of Japan has said that the employment and income situation
“has remained severe but the degree of severity has eased somewhat.”

Other details of the report follow:

The number of workers who retired or whose contracts expired:
October -20,000 y/y at 350,000 vs. September -80,000.

The number of those who lost their jobs and were looking for work:
October -150,000 at 1.01 million vs. September -70,000.

The number of people who quit their job voluntarily to look for
other openings: October +50,000 y/y at 1.08 million vs. September
-30,000.

Separately, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said that the
ratio of job offers to job seekers at government placement offices stood
at a seasonally adjusted 0.56 in October, up from 0.55 in September.
That means there were only 56 job offers for every 100 people looking
for work.

tokyo@marketnews.com
** Market News International Tokyo Newsroom: 81-3-5403-4833 **

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