Taipei, Sept. 22 (CNA) The August unemployment rate fell to a new low this year as the economy continued to rebound and the professional landscape steadied, according to the latest data from the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS).

The unemployment rate for August, after adjustment for seasonal factors including graduations and business downsizing, was 3.76 percent, the lowest it had been in 26 months.

This marks a 0.02 percentage point decrease from the adjusted figure from July.

Even the unadjusted number of 3.89 percent, although a 0.05 percentage point increase from July's figure, was the lowest year-on-year August figure in 17 years.

To put these figures into perspective, a total of 461,000 unemployed individuals was reported for August, DGBAS Census Department Deputy Director Pan Ning-hsin noted.

The 7,000-person increase from July was predominantly due to the influx to the job market of recent graduates.

In fact, the unemployment rate among people with a college degree or other higher education qualification was 4.88 percent, a 0.1 percentage point bump from July, while the unemployment rate among those aged 20-24 was 13.18 percent, much higher than the 6.71 percent among those aged 25-29.

Overall, August saw a year-on-year decrease of 19,000 unemployed people, signifying that as the economy continues to improve, the job market is slowly stabilizing.