Jobless rate unchanged at 2.9%

The total number of unemployed people stands at 105,700.

The October to December unemployment rate was 2.9%, unchanged from September to November.

Based on the data from the Census & Statistics Department (C&SD), the total number of unemployed people between October to December was 105,700, a drop of around 6,700 from the preceding three-month period.

"The unemployment rate decreased slightly across most major economic sectors," C&SD said.

Meanwhile, the number of underemployed individuals was 37,000, translating to a rate of 1%.

"Movements in the underemployment rate in different industry sectors varied, but the magnitudes were generally not large," C&SD commented.

Despite a decrease in the number of unemployed, employment and labour force shrank by around 1,900 to 3,706,800 and by 8,600 to 3,821,500, respectively.

 Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun said Hong Kon's labour market "should stay tight in the near term."

"Though the still unfavourable external environment may have some negative effects, the expected further recovery of inbound tourism and private consumption should continue to support labour demand," he added.