SEOUL, March 15 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's jobless rate hit a seven-year high last month as manufacturers cut jobs amid the ongoing restructuring in shipbuilding and shipping industries, a government report showed Wednesday.
Unemployment rate was 5 percent in February, up 0.1 percentage point from a year earlier, Statistics Korea data showed. It marked the highest since January 2010.
The jobless rate among those aged 15-29 touched 12.3 percent, the second-highest since the statistical agency began compiling the data in 1999.
The number of those unemployed stood at 1.35 million in February, the largest ever among any February figures since the related data began to be compiled in 1999.
The number of those employed totaled 25.788 million in February, up 371,000 from a year earlier. It was the fastest increase since August last year.
Employment in the construction and services industries increased last month, but manufacturers cut 88,000 jobs amid the restructuring among troubled shipbuilders and shipping firms.
Job creation in the manufacturing sector fell for eight months through February. Employment in the transport and agriculture industries also declined last month.
