RIO DE JANEIRO, Aug. 30 (Xinhua) -- Brazil's unemployment rate fell to 12.3 percent in the quarter ending in July, down 0.6 percentage points from the previous quarter, the country's statistics agency IBGE announced on Thursday.

It was the fourth consecutive fall in the unemployment rate. Compared with the same quarter last year, the unemployment rate fell 3.4 percent.

However, the IBGE warned that the decrease in unemployment is largely because people give up seeking jobs. According to the agency, 12.9 million Brazilians are seeking jobs.

"You have a process of reduction of unemployment and an increase of the employed population due to a rise of informal work. But it is hard to call that a favorable moment," said IBGE representative Cimar Azeredo.