XN000022-1984-02-14 — Page 3

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1984

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UNEMPLOYMENT SITUATION STABLE

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THE UNEMPLOYMENT AND UNDEREMPLOYMENT SITUATION REMAINED STABLE IN THE OCTOBER-DECEMBER QUARTER LAST YEAR, ACCORDING TO THE LATEST LABOUR FORCE STATISTICS RELEASED TODAY (TUESDAY) BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.

THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FOR THE PERIOD WAS 4.1 PER CENT, THE SAME AS THAT RECORDED FOR THE QUARTER ENDING NOVEMBER.

WHEN COMPARED WITH THE RATE OF 3.8 PER CENT FOR THE PREVIOUS QUARTER ENDING SEPTEMBER 1983, AND 3.9 PER CENT FOR THE QUARTER ENDING DECEMBER 1982, THE CHANGES ARE NOT STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT, THE SPOKESMAN POINTED OUT,

THE NUMBER OF UNEMPLOYED PERSONS IN THE QUARTER ENDING DECEMBER 1983 WAS ESTIMATED TO BE 105 500, COMPARED WITH 98 100 FOR THE QUARTER ENDING SEPTEMBER 1983, AND 98′ 700 FOR THE SAME QUARTER OF 1982.

THE UNDEREMPLOYMENT RATE FOR OCTOBER - DECEMBER 1983 WAS ESTIMATED TO BE 1.4 PER CENT WHILE THAT FOR JULY - SEPTEMBER 1983 WAS 1.6 PER CENT. THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THESE TWO RATES IS NOT STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT. THE ESTIMATE OF THE NUMBER OF UNDEREMPLOYED PERSONS WAS 36 800 FOR THE QUARTER ENDING DECEMBER, AS COMPARED WITH 39 900 FOR THE PREVIOUS QUARTER ENDING SEPTEMBER 1983.

CONSISTENT WITH THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANISATION, PERSONS WHO WORKED LESS THAN 35 HOURS A WEEK WERE REGARDED AS UNDEREMPLOYED ONLY IF THEY WERE SEEKING MORE WORK OR WERE NOT SEEKING MORE WORK BECAUSE THEY BELIEVED MORE WORK WAS NOT AVAILABLE, THE SPOKESMAN SAID.

IN COMMENTING UPON THESE FIGURES, THE COMMISSIONER FOR CENSUS AND STATISTICS SAID THAT BECAUSE THE PROPORTION OF FIRST-TIME JOB-SEEKERS (E.G. PEOPLE WHO HAVE JUST LEFT SCHOOL) VARIES FROM MONTH TO MONTH, THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATES WHICH HAD BEEN SEASONALLY ADJUSTED FOR THE VARIATION IN FIRST-TIHE JOB-SEEKERS SHOULD BE USED IN MAKING COMPARISONS OVER TIME. THE UNADJUSTED UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FOR THE QUARTER ENDING DECEMBER 1983 WAS 4.3 PER CENT.

THE UNEMPLOYMENT AND UNDEREMPLOYMENT STATISTICS WERE OBTAINED FROM A CONTINUOUS GENERAL HOUSEHOLD SURVEY CONDUCTED BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT. THIS SURVEY COVERS A QUARTERLY SAMPLE OF 15 000 HOUSEHOLDS OR 55 000 PERSONS, SELECTED SCIENTIFICALLY TO REPRESENT THE LAND-BASED CIVILIAN NON-INSTITUTIONAL POPULATION IN HONG KONG. PERSONAL AND LABOUR FORCE DATA WERE OBTAINED IN THE SURVEY BY INTERVIEWING EACH INDIVIDUAL MEMBER IN THE HOUSEHOLD SAMPLED.

DETAILED ANALYSIS OF THE LABOUR FORCE CHARACTERISTICS IS GIVEN IN THE REPORT ON THE GENERAL HOUSEHOLD SURVEY WHICH IS PUBLISHED FOUR TIMES A YEAR. THE NEXT REPORT COVERING THE QUARTER ENDING DECEMBER 1983 SHOULD BE AVAILABLE FROM THE COVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS CENTRE AROUND MARCH 20.

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