Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the general unemployment rate for February-April 2017 held stable as in the previous period (January-March), at 2.0%; the unemployment rate of local residents was 2.7%, down by 0.1 percentage point. Meanwhile, the underemployment rate remained unchanged at 0.5%.

Total labour force was 389,200 and the labour force participation rate stood at 71.1%. Total employment was 381,500 and employed residents totalled 280,000, up by 2,000 and 1,900 respectively from the previous period. Analysed by industry, employment in Construction and Hotels, Restaurants & Similar Activities registered an increase, while that in Retail Trade saw a decrease.

Number of the unemployed was 7,700, down by 200 from the previous period. Fresh labour force entrants searching for their first job accounted for 9.7% of the total unemployed, the same proportion as in the previous period.

In comparison with February-April 2016, the labour force participation rate dropped by 1.1 percentage points; the unemployment rate rose by 0.1 percentage point, while the underemployment rate held steady.