South Korea's job growth fell below 100-thousand last month, the lowest growth in more than eight years.

According to data by Statistics Korea released Friday, the number of people with jobs stood at 27-point-06 million in May, increasing by 72-thousand from a year earlier. 

This is the lowest growth since January 2010 when employment declined by ten-thousand. The monthly job growth has stayed slightly above the 100-thousand level over the past three months, but fell below the mark in May. 

As job growth slowed down, the unemployment rate grew to four percent, up point-four percentage points from last year. 

This marks the highest jobless rate for May since 2000, when the figure reached four-point-one percent. 

The unemployment rate for young people aged between 15 and 29 also jumped one-point-three percentage points on-year to ten-point-five percent. 

An official from Statistics Korea attributed the slow job growth to a decline in the youth population. The official added that restructuring in the automobile and shipbuilding industries led to less jobs in manufacturing, and that heavy rain during the month led to a decrease in day laborers in the construction sector.