India’s unemployment rate falls to six-month low of 5% in August

India’s unemployment rate dropped to a six-month low of 5% in August from 5.1% in July, government data showed Tuesday, with the decline in rural joblessness offsetting an increase in urban unemployment the Reuters reported.

The National Statistics Office data showed rural unemployment fell to 4.1% from 4.5% in July, its lowest level since January. Urban unemployment inched up to 6.8% from 6.7%.

Unemployment for men fell to 4.9% from 5%, while the rate for women fell to 5.1% from 5.4%.

The labour force participation rate, the share of the population aged 15 and over who are working or looking for work, rose to 55.6% in August from 55.4% in July. The worker population ratio went up to 52.8% from 52.5%.

Female labour force participation also improved with the overall rate rising to 34.8% from 34.4%. Rural female participation increased to 39.4% from 38.8%, while urban participation was largely unchanged at 25.4%.

The figures are based on the Current Weekly Status measure from India’s Periodic Labour Force Survey, which included 370,160 people across the country.