(Corrects headline to say the jobless rate rose)
TOKYO, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Japan's jobless rate rose to 2.8 percent in December and the availability of jobs hit the highest level in nearly 44 years, government data showed on Tuesday.
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose from 2.7 percent in November, data from the Internal Affairs ministry showed. Economists' median forecast was for the jobless rate to remain at 2.7 percent.
The jobs-to-applicants ratio rose to 1.59, the highest since January 1974. That compared with 1.56 in November and the median forecast of 1.57.
A full table can be seen on the website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications at: (Note: The jobs-to-applicants ratio and new job offers can be seen in Japanese on the labour ministry's website.)
(Reporting by Sumio Ito and Stanley White; Editing by Chang-Ran Kim)
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