|
RIO DE JANEIRO, Sept. 23 (Xinhua) -- The Brazilian government said on Friday the country has seen 17 straight months of rising unemployment.
According to a report by the Ministry of Labor, Brazil lost 33,953 formal jobs last month, bringing the total lost to 651,288 in the first eight months of this year.
Also, the number of lost jobs so far this year is 1.64 percent higher than that of last year, and is the worst since 2002.
Among all sectors, the worst hit was civil construction, which saw a net loss of 22,113 jobs, followed by agriculture with 15,436.
The protracted period of rising unemployment, which now stands at 11.6 percent, is a reflection of Brazil's deep economic crisis.
It is predicted that the South American nation will see an economic contraction of 3.3 percent this year, while the number was 3.8 percent last year.
