Japan labour demand hits two-decade high, jobless rate falls
TOKYO (Reuters) - The availability of jobs in Japan rose to the highest level in more than two decades and the jobless rate fell in December, government data showed on Friday.
The jobs-to-applicants ratio rose to 1.15 from 1.12 in November, reaching the highest since March 1992. That compared with the median forecast that the ratio would remain unchanged, data from the labour ministry showed.
The number of new job offers rose 4.7 percent in December from previous month and rose 5.6 percent from the same period a year ago.
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell to 3.4 percent in December from 3.5 percent in November, compared with economists' median forecast the jobless rate to remain unchanged, figures from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications showed.
(Reporting by Stanley White; Editing by Chris Gallagher)
