The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate hit a record high 5 percent in July, up 0.1 percentage point from June, according to government data released Tuesday.

The figure represents the highest jobless rate since the government started compiling unemployment data in 1953, and it forced the government to downgrade its outlook on the job situation for the first time in five months.

To combat the fall, the government will use a 60 billion yen emergency fund to subsidize companies hiring workers between the ages of 45 and 59, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said.