S. Korea adds 193,000 jobs in October; youth employment remains weak

The number of employed people stood at 29.04 million last month, up 193,000 from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Data and Statistics.

The increase underscores a continued upward trend in employment following a brief decline last December, when the country recorded a net loss of 52,000 jobs.

The labor market has shown steady recovery this year, adding 245,000 jobs in May before moderating to 183,000 in June and then jumping to 312,000 in September.

Despite the overall growth, employment data in the manufacturing and construction sectors remained sluggish.

The manufacturing sector, often considered the backbone of the South Korean economy, shed 51,000 jobs from a year earlier in October, extending its downturn to a 16th consecutive month.

The construction industry also continued to struggle, losing 123,000 jobs to continue its decline for the 18th straight month.

Last month's overall job growth was largely driven by hiring among older adults.

Employment among those aged 60 and older surged by 334,000 from a year earlier, while jobs for people in their 30s rose by 80,000.

In contrast, younger age groups saw notable declines.

Jobs for people aged between 15 and 29 fell by 163,000 in the previous month, the ministry said.

The employment rate for the age group dropped 1 percentage point to 44.6 percent, extending its decline to 18 consecutive months.

"More recruitment for experienced positions and ad hoc recruiting tend to disadvantage young job seekers," Gong Mi-sook, a ministry official, told reporters. "Weakness in the manufacturing sector, which mostly employs young people, is also having an impact."

The number of economically inactive people went up by 38,000 from a year earlier to 16.12 million.

Among them, the number of people who reported being out of work simply to rest rose by 135,000 to 2.58 million, according to the agency.

Notably, the number of people in their 30s who reported being out of work for rest climbed by 24,000 to 334,000, the highest level since the data were first compiled.

"Overall, employment and labor force participation rates among people in their 30s remain relatively solid," Gong said. "However, while the number of people citing child care or housework as reasons for inactivity has declined, more are saying that they are simply taking a rest."

As reported earlier, South Korea's exports went up 6.4 percent from a year earlier in the first 10 days of this month.