Seoul, April 10 : South Korea's jobless claims rose in a single digit last month amid growing concerns about economic slowdown, Labour Ministry data revealed Monday. The number of new applicants for job-seeking benefits was 144,000 in March, up 8.5 per cent from the same month of last year, Xinhua news agency reported citing the Ministry as saying. It was down from an increase of 14 per cent in February, but the number rebounded this year on mounting worry about the domestic economic downturn, driven by continued export fall and faltering housing market. The benefit applicants mainly increased in the manufacturing, the construction and the education service sectors. The job-seeking benefits are offered by the government to help the unemployed seek jobs, taking up a majority of unemployment benefits. It is financed by the state employment insurance fund. The number of the benefit receivers totaled 675,000 in March, up 1 per cent from a year earlier. It kept an upward trend for the second straight month. The total payment of job-seeking benefits expanded 3 per cent to 1.03 trillion won ($780 million) last month. The per-capita payment gained 1.9 per cent to about 1.53 million won in the cited month. /IANS