Macao saw a 4.0-percent unemployment rate at the end of 2005, a year-on-year drop of 0.4 percent, according to official statistics issued here on Monday.

The figures from the Statistics and Census Service (SCS) showed that Macao's total labor force was estimated at 259,000 at the endof the year, among which 10,000 remained jobless.

The figures showed that 89.4 percent of the jobless residents are seeking their first job.

The special administrative region of China has a population of over 480,000.

(Xinhua News Agency February 21, 2006)