HK jobless rate dips to 3.3%

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell 0.1 percentage points to 3.3% for the period between December 2022 and February 2023 compared with November 2022 to January 2023, the Census & Statistics Department announced today.

The underemployment rate also dropped 0.1 percentage points to 1.3%.

Total employment decreased by around 12,000 to 3,650,200 while the labour force decreased by around 14,600 to 3,766,000.

There were 115,700 unemployed people from December 2022 to February 2023, a drop of about 2,700 from the preceding period. The number of underemployed went down by around 4,200 to 47,900.

The combined unemployment rate of the consumption- and tourism-related sectors fell 0.2 percentage points from the preceding three-month period to 4.3%. The unemployment rates of many other sectors also declined, particularly for the transportation sector and the arts, entertainment and recreation sector.

Secretary for Labour & Welfare Chris Sun said the labour market conditions should improve further in the near term alongside the continued return of economic activities to normalcy and the rebound in inbound tourism.