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Singapore's labour market improved from June 2017 to June 2018 as economic activities picked up, according to an annual report issued by the Ministry of Manpower on Thursday.
The Labour Force in Singapore Advance Release 2018 said the city-state continued facing structural challenges in the period, despite improved outcomes, reports Xinhua.
These challenges include the country’s ageing population, which continued to exert downward pressure on the labour force participation rate.
Together with slower population growth, expansion of the resident labour supply is expected to moderate, the report added.
According to the report, Singapore's employment rate for residents aged 15 and over rose from 64.9 per cent in June 2017 to 65.1 per cent in June this year.
In a breakdown, the employment rate for older residents aged 65 and over hiked from 25.8 per cent to 26.8 per cent, thanks to the country's efforts to improve the employability of older workers.
The employment rate for youths aged 15 to 24 increased from 34.1 per cent to 34.5 per cent, as more taking on internships or vacation jobs.
The employment rate for residents aged 25 to 64 fell slightly from 80.7 per cent to 80.3 per cent, due to more women in their 30s staying outside the labour force during the year to care for their families.
The report also said the real median gross monthly income of full-time employed residents in Singapore grew from 4,232 Singapore dollars (about 3,085.45 US dollars) in June 2017 to 4,437 Singapore dollars in June this year.
Meanwhile, the non-seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for Singapore's professionals, managers, executives and technicians decreased for the second successive year from three percent in June 2017 to 2.9 per cent in June this year.