Labour Secretary says labour market to 'remain tight' in near term
Hong Kong's unemployment rate remain unchanged in the September to November period as the government said that labour market is expected to remain tight in the near future.
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained at 2.9% in September to November 2023, unchanged from the August to October period, according to Hong Kong's latest labour force statistics.
The Census and Statistics Department (C&SD) said movements in the unemployment rate in different industry sectors varied, but the magnitudes were generally not large.
The number of unemployed individuals (not seasonally adjusted) declined by around 3,400 to 112,400 in the September to November period, according to C&SD data.
The underemployment rate is also unchanged at one per cent, with the number of individuals staying at 36,000 in the latest period.
Hong Kong's total employment went down by around 4,700 to 3.7 million in September to November, as the labour force also decreased by around 8,100 to 3.82 million.
Tight labour market
The findings come as the monthly average of job vacancies decreased to 91,527 in the September to November period.
According to the C&SD, this is a 14.7% year-on-year decrease and a 6.8% decline from the average registered in August to October 2023.
"The labour market should remain tight in the near term," Labour Secretary Chris Sun said in a statement.
"Though the still unfavourable external environment might have some negative effects, the expected further recovery of inbound tourism and private consumption would continue to underpin labour demand."
In Hong Kong, 60% of employers surveyed by JobDB admit that it has been difficult to recruit capable talent. Despite this, 30% are still planning on expanding their full-time workforce early next year and are eyeing an increase in average salaries to lure in capable jobseekers.
