Unemployment rate low at 0.7%
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At the end of June, Thailand's unemployment rate remained low at 0.7 per cent, when 289,507 persons were reported jobless.
The figures represented a decline by 44,617 persons from the same period last year, according to the Office of the National Economic and Social Development Board.
The think tank said in the quarterly report that overall labour market condition was less tight reflected by the stable job vacancies to new registered applications ratio that lowered to 0.6 compared with 0.9 in the previous quarter.
Employment in the second quarter of 2013 stood at 38.44 million persons or expanded by 0.7 per cent, decelerated from the first quarter and the same period last year which rose by 1.3 and 1.5 per cent, respectively. The deceleration was caused by 0.2 per cent shrinkage in agricultural sector. However, non-agricultural sector expanded by 1.3 per cent, comparable to an expansion level of 1.4 per cent in previous quarter. This was reflected by acceleration of employment in (i) hotels and restaurants sector (154,940 persons), (ii) construction sector (144,077 persons), and (iii) wholesale and retail trades (112,023 persons). However, employment in manufacturing sector decreased by 0.7 per cent in accordance with a slowdown in production.
