FX.co ★ South Korea Jobless Rate Rises to 2.7% in Nov

In November 2025, South Korea experienced an uptick in its seasonally adjusted unemployment rate, reaching 2.7%. This marks the second consecutive month of increase, following rates of 2.5% in September and 2.6% in October. The number of unemployed individuals rose to 661,000, reflecting a year-on-year increase of 5,000 or 0.7%. The manufacturing and construction sectors continued to show signs of weakness, while youth employment saw its 19th straight month of decline compared to the previous year. Nevertheless, the economy added 225,000 jobs in November, representing a 0.8% rise from the previous year, bringing total employment to 29.706 million. This growth indicates a consistent upward trend in job creation for the year, despite a temporary setback last December when the country lost 52,000 jobs. The labor force participation rate improved slightly to 64.8%, marking a 0.2% increase from the previous year.