Record low: The May-July jobless rate fell to a 10-year low of 3.2%.

Employment continued to improve from May to July with the jobless rate dipping to 3.2%, its lowest level in a decade, the Census & Statistics Department says.

The underemployment rate remained stable at 1.9% from April to July. Falls were mainly seen in the decoration and maintenance, welfare and community services and sanitary services sectors, offsetting rises in the foundation and superstructure construction, and amusement and recreational services sectors.

Falls in the jobless rate were seen in the construction, transport and import-export trades in May-July compared with April-June. Total employment rose by 1,400 to 3,534,200, while the labour force surged by 4,500 to 3,658,800.

In May-July the number of jobless people rose by 3,100 to 124,600, and the number of underemployed grew by 2,100 to 69,900.

The total labour force grew mainly due to fresh graduates and school leavers entering the job market. With a relatively satisfactory absorption of these newcomers and increased job opportunities in the construction sector, the number of unemployed people only recorded a mild increase.

While welcoming the latest fall in the jobless rate Secretary for Labour & Welfare Matthew Cheung said the Government will do its best to promote employment on all fronts and help those adjusting to the increasingly knowledge-based economy through training, retraining and skill upgrading.

"The near-term employment outlook will mainly hinge on the pace of job creation in the economy relative to that in the labour supply, especially given a less sanguine macroeconomic environment over the remainder of 2008," Mr Cheung said, adding the Government will monitor the impact of increasing challenges posed by uncertainties in the external economic environment in the second half of the year.

In July the Labour Department gained 63,962 jobs from the private sector, up 36.7% on the same period last year. On average it received 2,900 vacancies each workday.