Macao's unemployment rate for the period of January to March 2012 fell to 2.0 percent, the lowest since the establishment of Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) in 1999, according to the figures released Friday by the city 's Statistics and Census Service (DSEC).

The figure was down by 0.1 percentage point over the previous period of December 2011 to February 2012, said the DSEC.

The number of the unemployed decreased by 300 from the previous period to 6,800, with 12.4 percent being fresh labor force entrants searching for their first job, down by 0.5 percentage points over the previous period, the figures indicated.

The city's total labor force stood at 347,000 in the period, with the labor force participation rate reaching 72.9 percent.

The employed population increased by 1,100 over the previous period to 340,000, in which employment of hotel sector, restaurant and similar activities and construction sector registered increase, the DSEC added.