Japan's unemployment rate eased in February to a seasonally adjusted 4.7 percent, down from a record-high 4.9 percent for the previous two months, the Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications Ministry said Friday.
The drop marks the first improvement in the jobless rate since August. A rate of 4.7 percent was last recorded in October.
The ratio of job offers to job seekers, however, deteriorated to a seasonally adjusted 0.64 in the reporting month from 0.65 in the previous month, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said in a separate report. The ratio, a measure of demand for labor, means that 64 jobs were being offered for every 100 people looking for work during the month.