According to the Household Labour Force Survey, the number of unemployed persons aged 15 years and over increased by 85,000 to 3.214 million compared to the previous month. The unemployment rate saw a 0.2 percentage point increase from the previous month, with rates estimated at 7.7% for men and 11.7% for women.

Additionally, the seasonally adjusted employment rate rose to 49.0%, with the number of employed persons increasing by 160,000 to 32.222 million in January 2024. For men, the employment rate was 66.0%, while for women, it was 32.4%.

The labour force participation rate also increased to 53.9%, with 35.436 million persons in the labour force, representing an increase of 245,000 persons compared to the previous month. The participation rate was 71.5% for men and 36.6% for women.

Furthermore, the youth unemployment rate in the 15-24 age group rose to 16.6%, increasing by 1.1 percentage points from the previous month. Among men, the rate was 14.1%, while among women, it was 21.1%.

The seasonally and calendar adjusted average weekly actual working hours decreased slightly to 43.3 hours in January 2024 compared to the previous month.

Finally, the composite measure of labour underutilization rate, consisting of time-related underemployment, potential labour force, and unemployment, stood at 26.5% in January 2024, marking an increase of 1.7 percentage points from the previous month. The combined rate of time-related underemployment and unemployment was 18.2%, while the combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force was 18.3%. (ILKHA)