Japan May jobless rate falls to 4.5 pct

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TOKYO, July 1 (Reuters) - Japan's jobless rate fell in May and the availability of jobs was flat , government data showed in Friday, suggesting a moderate recovery in the jobs market after the March earthquake and tsunami damaged supply chains and factories.

The jobs data excluded three prefectures -- Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima -- that were hit hardest by the natural disaster.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell 4.5 percent from 4.7 percent in April, lower than economists' median forecast of 4.7 percent, figures from the Internal Affairs ministry showed.

The jobs-to-applicants ratio was unchanged at 0.61 in May from April, compared with the median forecast of 0.60, separate data from the labour ministry showed.

The number of new job offers rose 17.3 percent in May from a year ago and it climbed a seasonally adjusted 1.1 percent from previous month. (Reporting by Yoko Kubota; Editing by Edmund Klamann)