[ti:COVID-19 Leaves Nearly 1 Million Vietnamese Unemployed] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]Vietnam has reported big success [00:03.72]in limiting the spread of COVID-19 inside the country. [00:10.04]But the worldwide pandemic [00:12.60]has left nearly 1 million Vietnamese unemployed. [00:19.04]About 900,000 people are currently unemployed. [00:24.68]Another 18 million are underemployed. [00:29.64]Those numbers come from the country's [00:32.68]General Statistics Office report for the first half of 2020. [00:40.28]The record jobless rate comes even though Vietnam [00:45.28]is the most populous nation in the world [00:48.60]to report zero COVID-19 deaths. [00:54.04]Vietnam is also one of the few countries worldwide [00:59.04]to see its economy grow this year. [01:04.56]Experts say the huge job losses were mainly caused [01:10.08]by the shrinking demand for its products [01:13.28]from nations hit hard by the virus. [01:18.12]The most affected areas have been in Vietnam's cities. [01:24.48]In the second quarter of 2020, [01:27.48]unemployment in cities hit a 10-year high of 4.46 percent. [01:35.32]During the same period two years earlier, [01:38.68]the unemployment rate in cities was 3.09 percent. [01:45.72]The rise also marks a change from the first quarter of 2020, [01:51.68]when the International Labor Organization office in Hanoi [01:56.72]said employment levels "remained unaffected [02:01.28]by the crisis" of COVID-19. [02:05.60]"The complicated and unpredictable COVID-19 pandemic [02:10.96]caused growth in most industries and sectors to slow down," [02:17.44]the General Statistics Office said in a statement. [02:22.92]"Unemployment and underemployment have increased greatly." [02:29.00]Such high jobless numbers are almost unheard of in Vietnam. [02:36.12]The country historically reports continually rising trade growth, [02:41.96]which fuels major factory and construction activity across the country. [02:49.72]In answer to COVID-19, the country introduced [02:54.20]a $2.7 billion relief fund that includes aid to workers. [03:02.76]Vietnam is in the process of approving labor unions [03:07.64]independent of the Communist Party. [03:11.96]The move is part of a promise related [03:15.44]to a new European Union trade deal. [03:20.20]Vietnam depends heavily on exports to drive its economy, [03:25.48]especially to the United States and the European Union. [03:31.40]But consumer demand in both places [03:35.20]dropped as the pandemic grew. [03:39.44]However, there is still more investment going to Vietnam [03:44.08]compared to most other nations. [03:47.96]More Vietnamese are flying within the country compared to last year. [03:54.76]The increase has come following a campaign [03:58.52]to replace the loss of foreign visitors with local travelers. [04:05.16]And, hotels like the Anam on Vietnam's south-central coast [04:11.04]say they have increased anti-virus safety measures [04:15.84]to help bring more local visitors. [04:20.44]I'm Bryan Lynn. [04:22.32]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM