University students attend Rikunabi Live, a job fair hosted by Recruit Career Co., at the Makuhari Messe convention center in Chiba, Japan. (File photo: VCG)

Japan's unemployment rate in October was unchanged from a month earlier amid the nation's demographic crisis comprising a rapidly aging and shrinking population, the government said in a report on Friday.

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, the unemployment rate in the recording period stood at 2.4 percent, with the figure hovering close to a 26-year low of 2.2 percent logged earlier this year.

In the recording period, according to the ministry, people in work hit a fresh record at 67.87 million, with the numbers of females in work also marking a new record at 30.37 million.

The figures were the highest since comparable data became available in 1953, the statistic bureau said.

As for the job availability ratio, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said separately on Friday it was unchanged from September in the recording period at 1.57. This equates to there being 157 job openings for every 100 people seeking employment.

The statistics bureau's data also showed the number of regular employees increased in the recording period by 40,000 workers to 35.26 million, marking the first increase in three months.

Within the overall figure, the number of male regular employees dropped by 200,000 to stand at 23.37 million, the bureau said.

Rising for the 25th successive month, the number of non-regular employees rose by 400,000 people to 21.96 million, the ministry's latest data also showed.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, the number of unemployed people in the recording period stood at 1.66 million, dropping by 10,000 from a month earlier, the ministry said.

Comprising this figure, 750,000 people left their jobs of their own volition, rising by 60,000 people compared to a month earlier, the ministry said.

The statistics bureau also said the number of new job seekers dropped by 10,000 people to 410,000 in the recording month.

In addition, 360,000 people were laid off in October, the ministry said.