BRASILIA (Reuters) – Brazil’s economy created a net 131,811 formal jobs in May, Labor Ministry data released on Thursday showed, falling short of the 200,000 forecast in a Reuters poll of economists.

The figure accounts for 2,116,326 admissions and 1,984,515 jobs closed, and was the worst for any May since 2020, when a net 398,294 jobs were lost during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The number of formal hires was affected by historic flooding in Brazil’s southernmost state of Rio Grande do Sul, said Paula Montagner, undersecretary of statistics at the ministry.

If not for that, net positions created would have matched the 155,704 in May 2023, she said.

All economic segments covered by the data showed job growth, led by the crucial service sector with 69,309 net formal hires.

From January to May, a net 1,088,955 jobs were created, up from 874,289 in the year-ago period, seasonally adjusted ministry data showed.

(Reporting by Bernardo Caram; Additional reporting by Victor Borges; Editing by Richard Chang)