MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Brazil's job creation falters interannually

High interest rates amid an economic slowdown have been singled out as the main cause for this retraction

According to Brazil's General Registry of Employed and Unemployed Workers (Caged) under the Labor Ministry, 213,002 formal jobs were added in September after subtracting the number of layoffs from that of hirings.

Although these results were better than in August, when the country created 147,358 jobs, job creation fell 15.6% compared to September of last year, when 252,237 more jobs were recorded.

Current high interest rates amid an economic slowdown have been singled out as the main cause for this retraction. In September 2023, 204,720 jobs were created.

All five surveyed sectors created formal jobs in September: Services - 106,606 jobs; Industry (manufacturing, extraction, and other types) - 43,095; Commerce - 36,280; Construction - 23,855; and Agriculture - 3,167.

In the services sector, job creation was driven by the information, communication, financial, real estate, professional, and administrative activities segment, which added 52,873 formal positions. The public administration, defense and social security, education, human health, and social services category added 16,985 jobs.

On the industrial front, the main highlight was manufacturing, which hired 39,305 more workers than it laid off, followed by the water, sewage, waste management, and decontamination sector, which created 2,120 positions. The extractive industry added 841 jobs in September.

The states that created the most jobs were São Paulo (49,052), Rio de Janeiro (16,009), and Pernambuco (15,602). (Source: Agencia Brasil)