XN000022-1984-03-15 — Page 9

THURSDAY, MARCH 15, 1984

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UNEMPLOYMENT RATE DECLINES

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THE UNEMPLOYMENT SITUATION IMPROVED SOMEWHAT WHILE THE UNDEREMPLOYMENT SITUATION REMAINED STABLE, IN THE THREE MONTHS FROM NOVEMBER 1983 TO JANUARY THIS YEAR, ACCORDING TO LABOUR FORCE STATISTICS RELEASED TODAY BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTIC DEPARTMENT.

THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FOR THE PERIOD WAS 3.7 PER CENT, WHICH COMPARES FAVOURABLY WITH THE RATE OF 4.1 PER CENT RECORDED BOTH FOR THE PREVIOUS QUARTER ENDING OCTOBER 1983 AND FOR THE QUARTER ENDING DECEMBER 1983. THẲ RATE FOR THE QUARTER ENDING JANUARY 1983 WAS 4.3 PER CENT

THE NUMBER OF UNEMPLOYED PERSONS IN THE QUARTER EING JANUARY 1984 WAS PROVISIONALLY ESTIMATED TO BE 96 000. AS COMPARED WITH 104 600 FOR THE QUARTER ENDING OCTOBER 1983, AND 106 700 FOR THE SAME QUARTER OF LAST YEAR.

- JANUARY 1984 THE UNDEREMPLOYMENT RATE FOR NOVEMBER 1983 WAS ESTIMATED TO BE 1.5 PER CENT WHILE THAT FOR AUGUST - OCTOBER 1983 WAS 1.6 PER CENT. THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THESE TWO RATES IS NOT STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT.

THE PROVISIONAL ESTIMATE OF THE NUMBER OF UNDEREMPLOYED PERSONS WAS 39 000 FOR THE QUARTER ENDING JANUARY 1984, AS COMPARED WITH 40 900 FOR THE PREVIOUS QUARTER ENDING OCTOBER 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.

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-TIME JOB-

THE SEEKERS SHOULD BE USED IN MAKING COMPARISONS OVER TIME. UNADJUSTED UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FOR THE QUARTER ENDING JANUARY 1984 WAS 3.8 PER CENT.

THE UNEMPLOYMENT AND UNDEREMPLOYMENT STATISTICS WERE OBTAINED FROM A CONTINUOUS GENERAL HOUSEHOLD SURVEY CONDUCTED BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT. THIS QUARTERLY SURVEY COVERS SAMPLE-SIZE OF SOME 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 MARCH 1984 SHOULD BE AVAILABLE FROM THE GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS CENTRE AROUND JUNE 20, 1984.

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