Friday 29 Mar 2024
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KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 19): AmBank Research expects Malaysia’s unemployment rate to stay around 3.3% – 3.4% by end-2017 from 3.5% in 2016.

In a note today, AmBank group chief economist Anthony Dass said July’s unemployment rate inched up marginally to 3.5% while the labour force participation rate fell slightly to 67.7%.

He said the slight gain in unemployment rate in July was driven by two factors i.e. (1) a net drop of 22.500 in the number of jobs created, the first drop during the year; (2) a surge of 11,300 in net unemployed; and (3) an increasing number of population outside the labour force, suggesting a growing number of students and those venturing into informal micro businesses.

“We expect the unemployment rate to stay around 3.3% – 3.4% by end-2017 from 3.5% in 2016.

“The better-than- expected GDP growth projected for 2017 at 5.7% – 5.9% should still keep the net jobs created position on a positive trajectory.

“The healthy 1H2017 GDP of 5.8% saw the net number of placed registrants standing at 1.6 million versus a net placement of minus 861,000 in 1H2016 and 1.11 million for the full year of 2016,” he said.

 

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