Japan is facing a spike in unemployment rate with lesser jobs being available. From 2.6 per cent in March, the country’s jobless rate went up to 2.8 per cent in April, as per government data. The ratio of jobs to applicants was 1.09, whereas it was 1.10 in March. With emergency declarations in May and curbs expected to extend to mid-June, the job offers are likely to drop further.
However, experts hope that widespread vaccination initiatives will ensure that employment is restored to pre-COVID levels in the second half of the year and that the economy will return to normal.
Meanwhile, in the US, the number of US citizens seeking unemployment benefits fell last week to 406,000. This only goes to prove that the job market is growing in strength with the economy reopening and the effect of the pandemic wearing off slowly.
As per the Labour Department, applications dropped from 4,44,000 to 3,8,000 in a week’s time. Weekly applications for jobless aid — which gives an idea of the pace of layoffs — has dropped by over 50 per cent since the beginning of 2021.
This indicates that the economy is recovering, with more people stepping out to eat, shop and travel.
