Taiwan jobless rate falls to 31-month low

TAIPEI: Taiwan's jobless rate in April dropped to a 31-month low of 4.29 percent as the economy gained momentum, the government said Monday.

The figure, down 0.19 percentage points from March and 1.1 points from a year ago, was the lowest since September 2008 when the rate stood at 4.27 percent, the budget, accounting and statistics department said.

The number of jobless fell 22,000 to 477,000 mainly due to a decline in first-time job seekers and seasonal business closures, it said.

Taiwan's unemployment rate hit a record high of 6.13 percent in August 2009 but has been improving since last year as the island's export-dependent economy emerged from recession.

Taiwan's economy grew a better-than-expected 6.55 percent in the three months to March fuelled by strong exports and domestic spending.

Copyright APP (Associated Press of Pakistan), 2011