Vietnam’s labor market continued to recover in the fourth quarter of 2022 but growth showed signs of slowing, according to the General Statistics Office.

The number of working people aged from 15 and older stood at 52.1 million people, an increase of 200,000 over the third quarter and 1.4 million year-on-year. Growth was, however, lower than that in the three previous quarters.

The number of underemployed people in the fourth quarter was some 898,200, an increase of 26,500 compared to the previous quarter and down 566,000 year-on-year. The underemployment rate was 1.98 per cent, up 0.06 percentage points compared to the previous quarter and down 1.39 percentage points year-on-year.

The General Statistics Office said the decline in orders during the closing months of 2022 due to uncertainties in many areas around the world together with price hikes for materials and fuels and rising interest rates and exchange rates posed many difficulties for local businesses, forcing them to reduce their number of workers.

Average monthly incomes in the fourth quarter stood at VND6.8 million ($285), an increase of VND95,000 ($4) compared to the previous quarter and VND1.5 million ($63) year-on-year.