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Singapore's unemployment rate rose to 3% after a steady four years

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has released its quarterly analysis on the labour market situation in 2016. Some of the topics covered include unemployment, employment, redundancy, and job vacancy amongst others. Here are some of the key findings of the MOM Labour Market 2016 report:

  • Unemployment rate rose to 3% in 2016, as compared to the steady 2.8% throughout four years.
  • The annual average resident long-term unemployment rate rose from 0.6% in 2015 to 0.8% in 2016 - the highest since 2009.
  • Employment grew in the fourth quarter of 2016
  • Redundancies rose in the fourth quarter of 2016 as compared to previous quarter and a year ago

Unemployment rate rose to 3% in 2016

Quarter-on-quarter (seasonally adjusted), the overall unemployment rate rose from 2.1% in September 2016 to 2.2% in December 2016. Furthermore, unemployment rate rose for residents (2.9% to 3.2%) and citizens (3.0% to 3.5%), as more people entered the labour force to look for work.

An estimated 73,900 residents (including 67,300 citizens) were unemployed in December 2016. This was higher than the 66,600 and 58,500 in September 2016.

Additionally, unemployment rate rose to its highest since 2010 for overall (1.9% in 2015 to 2.1% in 2016), residents (2.8% to 3.0%) and citizens (2.9% to 3.1%) in 2016.

MOM_LR2016_unemployment graph 6

As for job vacancies, the seasonally-adjusted vacancies declined to a four-year low of 47,600 in December 2016 (from 50,800 in September 2016).

Coupled with the increase in unemployed persons, the seasonally-adjusted ratio of job vacancies to unemployed persons fell from 91 openings per 100 job seekers in September 2016 to 77 in December 2016, the lowest since September 2009.

Graph/ Ministry of Manpower Lead image/ 123RF

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