SEOUL, Dec. 8 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's jobless claims fell for a second consecutive month in November due to lower demand in the construction industry, government data showed Monday.
The number of new applicants for job-seeking benefits retreated 6.4 percent year on year to 84,000 in November after diving 16.2 percent in the previous month, according to the Ministry of Employment and Labor.
The benefit applicants diminished in the construction, wholesale and retail, and lodging and food service industries, but rose in manufacturing and real estate.
The job-seeking benefits, which are offered by the government to help the unemployed seek jobs, take up a majority of unemployment benefits. It is financed by the state employment insurance fund.
The number of benefit recipients totaled 528,000 in November, down 2.7 percent from a year earlier.
The total payment of job-seeking benefits dipped 6.0 percent to 792.0 billion won (about 538.9 million U.S. dollars) for the month. ■