TRADE ISSUES? The DGBAS said that an increase of 14,000 in employment in the service sector came as workers moved from manufacturing, which fell 1,000

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 23, 2018
By: Kao Shih-ching  /  Staff reporter

The nation last month saw its first decline in the number of manufacturing sector employees since July, when the US-China trade dispute began, but the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) yesterday said it would take more time to determine whether trade issues are affecting the labor market.

The DGBAS’ remarks came after it reported that the unemployment rate edged down to 3.75 percent last month, the lowest in October for 18 years and a decrease of 0.11 percentage points from a month earlier.

For the first 10 months, the average unemployment rate was 3.71 percent, also the lowest in 18 years for the same period, the DGBAS said at a news conference in Taipei.

After seasonal adjustments, the unemployment gauge was 3.7 percent last month, flat from a month earlier.    [FULL  STORY]