Japan's unemployment rate inched down to 2.7% in February, government data showed Tuesday, as a resurgence in coronavirus infections led people to remain in their jobs rather than searching for new employers.
Separate government data from the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare showed the job availability ratio in February edged up to 1.21 from 1.20 in January, for the second consecutive month of improvement. The ratio means there were 121 job openings for every 100 job-seekers.
The seasonally adjusted jobless rate fell 0.1 percentage point from January — when the government declared a COVID-19 quasi-state of emergency in which restaurants and bars in some areas were asked to close earlier amid the spread of the highly contagious omicron variant — according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.