MALAYSIA'S LABOUR MARKET BETTER IN Q2 2021 BUT YET TO RETURN TO PRE-PANDEMIC LEVEL

PUTRAJAYA, Aug 19 -- Malaysia's labour market showed improvement in the second quarter of 2021 compared to a year ago but has yet to return to pre-pandemic level, said chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin.

“Malaysia’s labour market in the second quarter of 2021 indicated improvements in both labour supply and demand but has yet to return to pre-pandemic level," he said in a statement today following the release of the Labour Market Review, Second Quarter 2021 report.

According to the report, the number of employed persons rose 2.2 per cent to record 15.21 million persons from 14.88 million persons in the same quarter of the preceding year.

The number of unemployed eased by 3.4 per cent to 764,900 persons from 791,800 persons previously resulting in the decrease of the unemployment rate by 0.3 percentage points to 4.8 per cent. 

Mohd Uzir said the improvement was underpinned by more economic and social activities operations, particularly at the beginning of the second quarter, including reopening of secondary education and permission for food stalls and hawkers to operate in conjunction with the fasting month of Ramadan.

-- BERNAMA