Economics

Vanishing Jobs Growth Spells Deep Trouble for South Korea’s President

  • Unemployment rises to highest level in more than eight years
  • Government stands by its controversial hikes to minimum wage

Moon Jae-in

Photographer: Kimimasa Mayama/Pool via Bloomberg
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Unemployment and jobs growth in South Korea haven’t looked so bad since the wake of the global financial crisis, undermining President Moon Jae-in’s economic agenda.

DataBloomberg Terminal released Wednesday show the unemployment rate jumping to 4.2 percent, the highest since early 2010, and much greater than any economists forecast. Jobs growth slumped to just 3,000 last month, also the worst figure in more than eight years.