Brasília, August 20, 2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - Despite the cooling-off of the economy, 618,577 new jobs were created in the country in the last 12 months. This represents a 2.78% increase, according to information contained in the General Registry of Employment and Unemployment (Caged), released on Tuesday (19) by the Ministry of Labor. In July alone, 37,233 new jobs arose. So far this year, the cumulative total of new formal positions, with signed working papers, amounts to 598,140.

According to the Caged, the sector in which employment in July rose most was agriculture, with 26,974 new jobs, the sector's best performance since 2000. The explanation behind this rise in agricultural employment is the expansion of the harvest, including exports, in the Center-South.

The service sector, for its part, was responsible for 8,230 new jobs in July. New jobs in commerce and construction came to 7,662 and 3,504, respectively. Manufacturing employment, on the other hand, declined by 9,748 in July, as a result of the negative balance in some sub-sectors. Rubber, hides, and skins, for example, sacrificed 6,779 jobs during the period. For the year as a whole, however, manufacturing presents a positive balance of 118,272 new jobs.

São Paulo was the state in which the largest number of new jobs arose in July: 17,256. Minas Gerais was second, with 5,574. On the downside, Rio Grande do Sul was the leader, with 11,073 fewer positions. (DAS)