The nation’s job growth fell below 200-thousand in March to hit the lowest level in more than three years. 

According to Statistics Korea on Friday, the number of employed people stood at 28-point-39 million in March, up 173-thousand from the same period last year.

It marks the lowest growth since February 2021, when the nation lost 473-thousand jobs amid the COVID-19 pandemic. 

By age group, the largest drop was among people aged 15 to 29 with a year-on-year decrease of 131-thousand, while the figure for those aged 60 and older increased by 233-thousand. 

The employment rate for those aged 15 and older rose by zero-point-two percentage points from a year earlier to reach 62-point-four percent last month, the largest figure on record for March since the nation started compiling monthly data in July 1982.

The rate for those aged 15 to 64 also increased by zero-point-four percentage points from last year to reach 69-point-one percent, the highest March figure.

The unemployment rate rose one tenth of a percentage point from a year earlier to three percent.