Anchor: The nation's job market remains sluggish and the situation is worse for the country's young job seekers. The government said that almost one out of ten young job seekers were unemployed in the month of May. The youth unemployment rate has been renewing monthly records consecutively since February.
Our Kim Bum-soo has more. 

Report: While job growth remains sluggish overall in South Korea, youth unemployment hit nine-point-seven percent last month. That's the highest rate of young people without jobs for the month of May since 1999.

According to Statistics Korea's May job figures released Wednesday, the number of employed people stood at 26-point-45 million in May.

The economically active population grew 244-thousand from a year ago and employment rate inched up zero-point-one percentage point to 61 percent. But the figure was up only 261-thousand from the same time last year, extending stagnant job growth in the 200-thousand level for the second straight month. 

The job market was particularly tougher for young people aged between 15 and 29. The unemployment rate for the age bracket rose point-four percentage point to almost one in ten without a job. The youth unemployment rate has been renewing monthly highs since February.

Counting those who have part-time jobs while seeking full-time employment, the jobless rate among young people stood at ten-point-eight percent in May.

The overall unemployment rate fell point-one percentage point to three-point-seven percent. South Gyeongsang Province saw its jobless rate rise by one-point-two percentage points on-year to reach the national average as struggling shipbuilders in the region have begun to lay off workers.
Kim Bum-soo, KBS World Radio News.