Japan's unemployment rate worsened to 3.0% in May, hitting the highest level in five months, as a government-declared state of emergency over the COVID-19 pandemic was extended to more of the country, official data showed Tuesday.
The seasonally adjusted jobless rate rose from 2.8% in April, up for the second straight month, according to the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry. It had remained in the upper half of the 2% range since logging 3.0% in December.
Separate data from the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry showed that the job availability ratio in May was unchanged from a month earlier at 1.09, meaning that there were 109 job openings for every 100 job-seekers. It fell 0.01 point in April.