The proportion of unemployed Filipinos declined in November, as the typical surge in employment opportunities during the holiday season trumped the labor market disruptions caused by the powerful storms that hit the country late last year.

A nationwide survey of 11,276 households showed there were 1.66 million individuals who were either jobless or out of business in November, down from the 1.97 million unemployed in October, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Wednesday.

That was equivalent to a jobless rate of 3.2 percent, easing from the 3.9 percent previously.

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Another good news is that the quality of available work significantly improved at a time people needed more cash to spend during the Christmas shopping season.

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READ: Unemployment rate down in Oct but job quality worsened

PSA data showed there were 5.35 million employed Filipinos who had to look for additional job or work hours in November to augment their income, translating to an underemployment rate of 10.8 percent. That was better than the 6.08 million underemployed individuals registered in October, when the rate stood at 12.6 percent.

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At the same time, the number of wage and salary workers—a proxy for good quality jobs—increased to 31.63 million in November, from 30.73 million in the preceding month.

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Speaking to reporters, National Statistician Claire Dennis Mapa said the holiday season created more job opportunities for many Filipinos, offsetting the impact of strong typhoons that slammed into the country late in the season last year.

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“We see that there were subsectors that saw increases in the number of employed persons. And it’s usually in the last quarter,” Mapa said.

Figures showed wholesale and retail trade posted the largest month-on-month increase in employment among major industries after adding 746,000 jobs in November. This was followed by accommodation and food service (+389,000) and “other services activities” (+328,000) like repairs of computers and personal goods.

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But the impact of the typhoons on the labor market was still noticeable. The PSA said the agriculture and forestry sector shed 335,000 jobs in November.

Fewer job seekers

Local labor market indicators improved in November despite the fewer number of job seekers.

State statisticians reported that there were 51.2 million people aged 15 years old and above who actively looked for employment in November, lower than the 50.12 million in October.

PEZA director general, Tereso Panga said the Aboitiz InfraCapital Inc. is expanding its 280-hectare West Cebu Estate in Balamban town by an additional 39 hectares.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEi) closed at 6,882.12, down 0.01 percent, or 0.80 points.

That was equivalent to a labor force participation rate of 64.6 percent, down from 63.3 percent before. PSA’s Mapa did not tell the reasons cited by respondents who dropped out of the workforce in November, but he said the decline was “not statistically significant.”

In a commentary, Chinabank Research said it expects the local job market to “remain in solid shape” this year.

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“While external uncertainties could temper business sentiment, favorable business and economic conditions such as stable inflation and lower borrowing costswjevo, along with sustained infrastructure development, and investment-friendly policies should help support a positive outlook for economic activities and job opportunities,” Chinabank said.

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