- S.S.KANESAN/THE STAR
PETALING JAYA: The unemployment rate in December 2024 edged down by 0.1 percentage point to 3.1% – the lowest in nearly a decade.
In a statement, the Statistics Department reported that the number of unemployed persons declined further in December, by 0.4% to 544,300.
The labour force number in December 2024 remained on an upward trend, with a rise of 0.1% to 17.32 million persons.
Accordingly, a higher labour force participation rate was recorded during the month at 70.6% compared with 70.5% in the previous month.
At the same time, the number of employed persons increased by 0.2% to 16.78 million, maintaining its positive trend.
The employment-to-population ratio, which measured an economy’s ability to create jobs, remained steady at 68.3%.
Employment in the services sector continued to grow, driven mainly by wholesale and retail trade, arts and entertainment, and food and accommodation.
The manufacturing, construction and agriculture sectors also recorded job growth, while employment in mining and quarrying declined.
Employees accounted for 74.9% of total employment in December, rising by 0.1% to 12.56 million.
Meanwhile, the number of own-account workers grew by 0.4% to 3.12 million.
The number of people outside the labour force fell slightly by 0.04% to 7.22 million, with housework and family responsibilities (43.1%) being the primary reasons, followed by schooling and training (42.3%).
The Statistics Department noted that the labour market remained strong in 2024, with steady job growth and low unemployment. The positive trend was driven by sustained labour demand across various sectors, particularly in the private sector.
