Recent data show that South Korea's jobless rate rose to a nearly 21-year high in January.

According to data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the average unemployment rate of OECD members came to six-point-eight percent in January, unchanged from the previous month.

The jobless rate of South Korea grew point-nine percentage points on-month to five-point-four percent in January. It was lower than the OECD average, but marked the highest since October 1999.

Other OECD members have witnessed drops in their jobless rates after the figures hit an average of eight-point-eight percent in April last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, while South Korea's jobless rate is rising since September last year.