- Japan’s unemployment rate unexpectedly was at 2.4 percent in January 2023, compared with December's figure and market forecasts of 2.5 percent.
- This was the lowest reading since February 2020, as the number of unemployed declined by 40 thousand to 1.67 million while employment was up by 180 thousand to 67.44 million.
- The labor force increased by 120 thousand to 69.11 million while those detached from the labor force fell by 220 thousand to 41.02 million.
- The non-seasonally adjusted labor force participation rate was at 62.2 percent in January, unchanged from the same month the previous year.
- A year earlier, the unemployment rate was at 2.8 percent.
- Meanwhile, the jobs-to-applications ratio was unchanged at 1.35 in January, staying at the highest level since March 2020 for the fourth consecutive month.
- ETFs: JEQ , EWJ , DXJ , FXY .
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Japan jobless rate edges down to 35-month low to 2.4% in January