Improvement sign: The jobless situation has improved with the latest figure falling to 5.1%.

Hong Kong's jobless rate fell to 5.1% in the September-November period, from 5.2% in August-October, the Census & Statistics Department says. The underemployment rate rose from 2.4% to 2.5%.

With the steady economic recovery, the unemployment situation has further improved with the latest figure falling for three consecutive periods, it said.

Total employment rose from 3,488,300 to 3,497,600, while the labour force fell from 3,678,700 to 3,678,600. The number of unemployed fell from 190,400 to 181,000, while the underemployed grew from 88,900 to 90,200.

Decreases in the unemployment rate were mainly seen in the wholesale; retail, accommodation and food services; and, decoration and maintenance sectors. For the underemployment rate, increases were mainly seen in the construction, and professional and business services sectors.

In particular, the construction sector's jobless rate fell for seven consecutive months to 7.6%.

The jobless rate for all age groups dropped across-the-board. The falls were more noticeable in the 15-19 and 20-24 age groups, by 1.1 percentage points to 21.6% and 0.9 percentage point to 11.5%, showing the youth unemployment situation is improving gradually.

Secretary for Labour & Welfare Matthew Cheung said total employment reverted to an increase, showing the job situation has started to recover.

"As business activities are expected to pick up around Christmas and the New Year, labour demand is likely to increase further during the festive season, which should in turn ease the pressure on the unemployment rate in the near term."

He said the continued recovery of the labour market will hinge on overall business performance and, in particular, the capacity and pace of job creation in the corporate sector. With the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge starting construction and Disneyland's expansion, it is expected the construction sector's job situation will improve continuously.

The Labour Department netted in November 56,572 vacancies from the private sector, up 1.4% on October. The number of successful placements rose to 12,004 from 11,545 in November, up 4%.