Seoul, July 15 (IANS): Job creation in South Korea slowed down last month in the aftermath of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outbreak, a government report said on Wednesday.

The number of those employed dropped to 329,000 in June after reaching 379,000 in May 2015, Xinhua reported, citing Statistics Korea.

Job creation in the manufacturing and construction sectors advanced 3.1 percent and 1.6 percent, respectively, last month, but those in the wholesale and retail industry as well as the food and lodging sector slowed on the back of the MERS outbreak.

Employment in the wholesale, retail and food and lodging sectors decreased to 141,000 in comparison to figures of 178,000 in May.

The deadly corona virus infected 186 people since the first case was identified on May 20. A total of 36 people died due to the infection.

After peaking in June, the MERS spread has shown signs of abating in July, indicating an employment rebound this month.