Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in Hong Kong, China
Hong Kong, China: Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) was 4.4% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in Hong Kong, China, 1975–2025
Source: Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
In 2025, unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in Hong Kong, China stood at 4.4%.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 20.8% on the previous year and up 27.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in Hong Kong, China peaked at 9.2% in 1975 and was at its lowest, 1.1%, in 1989.
That places Hong Kong, China 100th out of 181 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 51 years of available data.
Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in Hong Kong, China, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 9.2% | — |
| 1976 | 5.4% | -41.4% |
| 1977 | 4.4% | -18.5% |
| 1978 | 2.7% | -39.7% |
| 1979 | 3.7% | +38.0% |
| 1980 | 4.5% | +21.7% |
| 1981 | 3.5% | -22.4% |
| 1982 | 3.9% | +13.2% |
| 1983 | 5.0% | +27.3% |
| 1984 | 4.1% | -17.1% |
| 1985 | 3.5% | -15.4% |
| 1986 | 3.0% | -14.4% |
| 1987 | 1.7% | -42.7% |
| 1988 | 1.4% | -20.9% |
| 1989 | 1.1% | -20.7% |
| 1990 | 1.3% | +23.2% |
| 1991 | 1.9% | +46.5% |
| 1992 | 2.0% | +3.1% |
| 1993 | 2.0% | -1.5% |
| 1994 | 2.0% | +2.5% |
| 1995 | 3.4% | +67.8% |
| 1996 | 3.1% | -8.0% |
| 1997 | 2.3% | -26.0% |
| 1998 | 5.0% | +114.7% |
| 1999 | 6.7% | +35.1% |
| 2000 | 5.6% | -17.0% |
| 2001 | 6.0% | +7.4% |
| 2002 | 8.3% | +39.9% |
| 2003 | 9.2% | +9.8% |
| 2004 | 7.7% | -16.1% |
| 2005 | 6.5% | -15.0% |
| 2006 | 5.6% | -13.9% |
| 2007 | 4.5% | -19.5% |
| 2008 | 4.0% | -10.6% |
| 2009 | 6.1% | +49.9% |
| 2010 | 5.1% | -16.7% |
| 2011 | 4.0% | -21.1% |
| 2012 | 3.8% | -5.4% |
| 2013 | 3.8% | +0.8% |
| 2014 | 3.6% | -6.2% |
| 2015 | 3.4% | -3.6% |
| 2016 | 3.7% | +7.4% |
| 2017 | 3.4% | -8.4% |
| 2018 | 3.2% | -5.9% |
| 2019 | 3.5% | +11.2% |
| 2020 | 6.9% | +94.5% |
| 2021 | 6.1% | -10.8% |
| 2022 | 5.1% | -16.7% |
| 2023 | 3.5% | -31.8% |
| 2024 | 3.6% | +4.1% |
| 2025 | 4.4% | +20.8% |
Hong Kong, China compared with similar countries
- Hong Kong, China's 4.4% is below the median for high income countries, which is 4.9%, 89% of the median. (75 countries reporting)
- Hong Kong, China's 4.4% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.5%, 1.3× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in Hong Kong, China changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | +114.7% | 2.3% | 5.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5.1% | 2.7% | 9.2% | 5 |
| 1980s | 3.2% | 1.1% | 5.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.0% | 1.3% | 6.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 6.4% | 4.0% | 9.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.7% | 3.2% | 5.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.9% | 3.5% | 6.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Hong Kong, China
More work & labour data for Hong Kong, China
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 2,981 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 55.13 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 3,663 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 2.78 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 1.06 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 149,185 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 100,833 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 53.6 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 1.56 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate -1.12 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in Hong Kong, China?
- Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in Hong Kong, China was 4.4% in 2025, according to Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest unemployment, male (% of male labor force) recorded in Hong Kong, China?
- The highest recorded value was 9.2% in 1975.
- What is the lowest unemployment, male (% of male labor force) recorded in Hong Kong, China?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.1% in 1989.
- How does Hong Kong, China rank for unemployment, male (% of male labor force)?
- Hong Kong, China ranks 100th out of 181 countries with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment, male (% of male labor force) rising or falling in Hong Kong, China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 27.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Hong Kong, China data come from?
- The figures come from Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) (national estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 51 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Unemployment refers to the share of the labor force that is without work but available for and seeking employment. Definitions of labor force and unemployment differ by country.