South Korea's jobless rate inched down in July as more people were hired in the manufacturing and hospitality sectors, a government report showed Wednesday.
  

According to the report by Statistics Korea, the jobless rate stood at 3.7 percent last month, down from 3.9 percent in June. The number, however, represents a 0.3 percentage-point rise from a year earlier.
  

The seasonally adjusted jobless rate for July was 3.7 percent, down from 3.9 percent tallied for the previous month.
  

The number of employed people reached slightly more than 26.30 million last month, with 326,000 new jobs being created on-year, the report showed.

 
The monthly increase in jobs represents a slight dip from 329,000 new positions created in June.
  

July marked the third month in a row that more than 300,000 jobs have been created in the country.
  

The employment rate for people between 15 and 64, which is the range recommended by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, stood at 66.3 percent last month, the highest reached since the government started compiling such data in 1982. This number has been on the rise for 26 months.
  

The statistical agency said manufacturing-led growth created some 170,000 jobs, up 3.9 percent on-year.
  

Hospitality, as well as sports, culture and recreational services, which was affected most by the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome outbreak, also added more jobs. Jobs created in the hospitality sector, which covers eateries and lodgings, rose 3.5 percent compared with the year before, with numbers for sports, culture and recreational services jumping 8.8 percent.
  

The latest data, however, showed agrofisheries and the financial sectors shed 91,000 and 62,000 jobs, respectively, last month compared with the year before.
  

"There were some improvements in other areas, although it is still too early to say whether the fallout from MERS has completely receded," said Sim Won-bo, head of the agency's employment statistics division. He pointed out that growth in the hospitality sector has not reached past levels at this time of the year. 
  

MERS, first confirmed on May 20, has claimed 36 lives in South Korea and infected 186 people, although no new cases have been reported since July 4.
  

According to the report, the unemployment rate for people between the ages of 15 and 29 stood at 9.4 percent in July from 10.2 percent a month earlier.
  

The agency said the decline is mainly due to seasonal factors, and the number should go up in August, when many students seek jobs during their summer break.
  

The so-called labor underutilization indicator stood pat at 11.3 percent last month from the month before.
  

The indicator is based on guidelines made by the International Labor Organization and reflects the number of people who are underemployed and those who currently hold part-time jobs but want full-time work.
  

It also counts unemployed people who have given up looking for work not by choice but due to other circumstances, which makes them potential jobseekers.
  

The rise is an indication that employment conditions felt by ordinary people are worse than what official jobless figures show.
  

Starting last year, the statistical office decided to provide the indicator to give a more accurate picture of the country's labor market situation.
  

Related to July's employment figures, the finance ministry said the on-year increase of more than 300,000 jobs is a positive sign but emphasized MERS is still exerting a negative pull on the market.
  

"Growth in jobs created in the service sector actually lost some steam," it said. Compared with June, job creation in the service sector was down by a significant 66,000.
  

The ministry said that while employment conditions should improve, the slow pace of recovery will continue to pose challenges. (Yonhap)