Graduates' prospects better

The unemployment rate in April indicates a continued steady improvement in the employment environment as part of the longest period of economic expansion since World War II.

The large decrease in the unemployment rate for 15- to 24-year-olds also suggests employment prospects for new graduates have improved markedly since the so-called ice age in graduate recruitment.

The overall unemployment rate, which had remained steady at 4 percent for five consecutive months, fell in April--the start of the new business year--due mainly to aggressive recruitment of new graduates.

Large-scale retirement of baby boomers turning 60 years old also began this year, which has prompted companies to seek fresh workers.

The fall in the number of unemployed young people, including the number of graduates who fail to secure employment with their preferred companies and keep searching, was particularly pronounced in this period.

However, the current improvement is unlikely to have a strong influence on the macroeconomy.
According to the labor ministry's monthly labor statistics survey, the average wage per worker had, for the four consecutive months until March, fallen compared with a year earlier. The economy's future prospects will therefore largely depend on whether the fall in the unemployment rate leads to higher wages.
(May. 30, 2007)
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/business/20070530TDY01004.htm