Seoul: The number of young South Koreans who were jobless or opted to remain economically inactive surpassed 1.2 million last month amid tough job market conditions, data showed Sunday. A total of 1.21 million individuals aged 15 to 29 either remained unemployed or economically inactive to prepare for a job or without specific reasons as of the end of February, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.

According to Philippines News Agency, the figure marked an increase of 70,000 from last year's 1.13 million. Of the total, those who opted to stay out of work without specific reasons reached 504,000, marking the highest level since the agency began compiling the relevant data in 2003.

The number of unemployed young people actively seeking a job came to 269,000 last month, reflecting a 2 percent rise from a year earlier. Experts attribute the challenging job market conditions for the younger age brackets to weak economic growth and domestic demand, along with companies' preference for experienced workers.