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Ninth meeting of JLG expert group on transitional Budget
The Sino-British Joint Liaison Group will hold their ninth round of Expert Talks on June 24 and 25 in Hong Kong to discuss the preparation of Hong Kong's transitional Budget and related matters.
The British team will be led by Mr K C Kwong, Secretary for the Treasury of the Hong Kong Government. The Chinese team will be led by Mr Chen Zuo'er, Chinese Representative on the Sino-British Joint Liaison Group. They will be assisted by experts.
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Latest unemployment and underemployment statistics
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for the period February - April 1996 was 3.3%, and the underemployment rate was 1.8%, according to the latest labour force statistics released today (Friday) by the Census and Statistics Department.
The provisional seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for the period March - May 1996 edged slightly lower to 3.2%, while the provisional underemployment rate was marginally higher, at 1.9%.
Commenting on the latest figures, a Government spokesman said that labour market remained generally stable in recent months. Decreases in the unemployment rate were observed in the community, social and personal services and construction As to the sectors, and to a lesser extent, also in the manufacturing sector. underemployment rate, the slight increase was concentrated in the manufacturing sector. The underemployment rates in the other major sectors remained largely stable.
Total employment showed a rapid increase of 4.1% in the three months ending April 1996 over a year earlier. But labour supply grew even faster, by 4.4%. As a result, the unemployment rate remained at a relatively high level.
During the period February - April 1996, the number of unemployed persons with previous jobs was estimated at 90,700. Another 5,900 unemployed persons were first-time job-seekers. The number of underemployed persons was estimated at 58,000.