BusinessLive reports that SA’s unemployment rate improved in the fourth quarter, as is usually the case for a quarter that brings a temporary hiring boost thanks to the holiday season.  

Unemployment from September to December fell by 0.4 of a percentage point to 27.1%, Statistics SA indicated in its quarterly labour force survey released on Tuesday.  The data showed that the working-age population increased by 149,000 in the fourth quarter of 2018 compared to the previous quarter, while the number of employed increased by 149,000 to 16.5-million.  The number of unemployed decreased by 70,000 to 6.1-million.  But, employment gains in the fourth quarter are usually temporary and reversed in the following quarter.  Absa senior economist Peter Worthington commented:  “Employment creation remains weak, reflecting sustained periods of poor investment growth.  The long-run trend is probably for SA’s unemployment rate to keep rising gradually.”

• Read Sunita Menon’s report on the unemployment data in full at BusinessLive
• Read too, Unemployment rate drops marginally to 27.1% at end of 2018, at Fin24

Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page