Japan’s unemployment rate edged down to 2.4% in September 2026, below market expectations and August's figure of 2.5%. The number of unemployed fell by 100 thousand to 1.67 million, while employment increased by 340 thousand to a four-month high of 68.68 million. The labor force expanded by 250 thousand to 70.34 million, while the number of people outside the labor force declined by 200 thousand to a four-month low of 39.13 million. On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, the labor force participation rate edged up to 64.5% from 64.2% in August and a year earlier. Meanwhile, the jobs-to-applicants ratio rose to 1.19 from 1.18 in each of the previous three months, exceeding consensus of 1.18.