Japan's unemployment rate remains at 2.5 pct in January

Tokyo, March 4 — Japan's nationwide unemployment rate stood at 2.5 percent in January, unchanged from the previous month, data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications showed Tuesday.

The number of employed individuals reached 67.79 million, an increase of 650,000 compared to the same month last year, marking 30 consecutive months of growth, according to the ministry.

 Meanwhile, the total number of unemployed individuals remained at 1.63 million, the same as in January of the previous year.

Separate data from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare showed Japan's nationwide job-to-applicant ratio in January stood at 1.26, meaning there were 126 job openings for every 100 jobseekers, up 0.01 points from the previous month.

The ministry noted that while some companies are increasing job postings due to labor shortages, others are struggling to hire new employees due to rising costs.