worldstat.us · Japan · Cycle layer · Indicator
Unemployment rate
Fetched 18 Sep 2026, 08:41 UTC
2.4 %
Normal 0.5 pp below the 2.9 % trigger · falling
As of Jul 2026 · Threshold > 12-month low + 0.5 pp
Recession, Feb 1991 to Oct 1993Recession, May 1997 to Jan 1999Recession, Nov 2000 to Jan 2002Recession, Feb 2008 to Mar 2009Recession, Mar 2012 to Nov 2012Recession, Oct 2018 to May 202012345Threshold > 12-month low + 0.5 ppTrigger > 12-month low + 0.5 pp1960197019801990200020102020
1955 to 2026 · percent. Shaded bands are recessions.
What it is

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate from the Labour Force Survey. The threshold is the Sahm construction: half a point above the past year's low.

Threshold source: Sahm-rule construction applied to the Japanese rate. How thresholds are chosen

Known weaknesses

Japanese unemployment barely moves across the cycle because firms hoard labour; the series crosses its threshold only in severe downturns.