The Philippine Statistics Authority reported that unemployment declined to 2.58 million persons in March 2026, resulting in a 5% unemployment rate from a labor force of 51.65 million, as announced by National Statistician Claire Dennis Mapa. However, the year-to-date unemployment rate of 5.3% exceeded the government's target ceiling of 4% to 5% for 2026 to 2028. Employment decreased to 49.07 million, and the underemployment rate rose to 12.3% from 11.8% in February 2026. In response, the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development, led by Secretary Arsenio Balisacan, is pursuing measures including job-skills matching, reskilling, fuel subsidies, loan payment deferrals, and intensified support for overseas Filipino workers affected by the Middle East conflict, with 8,139 repatriated and 498,475 jobs available for re-employment as of April 28.