Japan's job availability continued to improve for the third straight month in September to hit its highest level in over 23 years, further indicating that companies need more workers, the government said Friday.
The ratio of job offers to job-seekers rose to 1.24 in September from 1.23 in August, marking the highest level since January 1992. The figure means 124 positions were available for every 100 job seekers.
After a rise in the previous month, the country's jobless rate stayed flat at 3.4 percent in September, the internal affairs ministry said in a preliminary report.
"The employment situation remains on an improving trend," a government official said.
The number of unemployed people rose a seasonally adjusted 1.8 percent to 2.28 million, while the number of workers recorded a 0.4 percent increase to 63.99 million.
The unemployment rate for men gained 0.1 percentage points to 3.6 percent and the same for women fell 0.1 points to 3.1 percent.
The percentage of those aged between 15 and 64 on payrolls hit a record high of 73.9.
By industry, the health care and welfare sector, which has continued to attract female workers, added 340,000 jobs from a year earlier, while the information and communications industry added 140,000 jobs.
The manufacturing sector, however, saw a decrease of 420,000 jobs, with a government official citing a move of production overseas as one factor.
Japanese companies have been willing to hire more workers on the back of improvements in their earnings thanks to the yen's weakness.
But some analysts have pointed out concerns over China's economic slowdown, and that a sharp decline in the jobless rate may be unlikely, as Japan's labor market may be nearing full employment.