Unemployment rate up slightly to 3.5% in December

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s unemployment rate in December 2016 increased 0.1 percentage point to 3.5% compared with the previous month, the Statistics Department said.
In a statement on the “Key Statistics of Labour Force in Malaysia” yesterday, it said the year-on-year comparison also showed a higher unemployment rate of 0.1% against December 2015.
The labour force participation rate stood at 67.6% in December 2016, down 0.1 percentage point compared to the previous month.
The department said 32% or 7.07 million of working age population (15-64 years) were outside the labour force, comprising housewives, students, retired, disabled persons and those not interested in working.
As at December 2016, the country’s labour force stood at 14.79 million.