TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan’s unemployment rate rose slightly in February to reach 3.65% due to the annual phenomenon of employees looking for a new job around the Lunar New Year period, reports said Thursday (March 24).

The Cabinet-level Directorate-General for Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said the end of some temporary labor contracts also contributed to the jobless rate rising from the 3.61% recorded in January.

The number of people out of work in February was 434,000, which was 4,000 more than the previous month, CNA reported. Taking seasonal factors into account, the jobless rate dropped from 3.7% in January to 3.67% in February, DGBAS officials said.

The average monthly number of people out of work for the first two months of 2022 stands at 432,000. Nevertheless, compared to the same period in 2021, the number of unemployed fell by 9,000, according to the DGBAS.