This follows on from news in August that the number of job vacancies stood at 390,000 from approximately 428,000 the previous month. This welcome update had marginally outperformed expectations as unemployment rates were expected to stay as they were.
The States with the lowest unemployment levels were Western Australia (WA) and New South Wales (NSW), both at 3.3 percent. These figures show solid improvement over the previous months, with WA falling from 3.8 percent and NSW dropping from 3.6 percent.
Queensland also saw a 0.2 percent improvement while Victoria remained at the previous month’s levels. The news wasn’t so good for the Australian Capital Territory which rose to 3.9 percent from 3.1 percent.
However, according to the Bureau’s Head of Labour Statistics, Kate Lamb, the slight improvements in the figures were mainly caused by more people than usual moving out of the labour force. When people are removed from the available workforce, such as when retiring or opening a business, they no longer count towards the unemployment figures.
This slight anomaly has helped to keep the Australian labour market in good health, remaining “relatively tight and resilient”, according to Kate Lamb.
The news came despite the number of full-time jobs reducing by 40,000. Despite these losses, the job market still saw an increase of filled 6,600 jobs overall. The Central Bank has forecast the unemployment rate to increase to 4.5 percent by the end of the calendar year 2024, although they are due to revise estimates on 10th November.
While the figures are positive at first glance, they may also suggest the employment market is cooling, with fewer hours worked compared to employment growth. This interpretation of the figures is widely accepted, including by ABS Head Kate Lamb and Adam Boyton, head of Australian Economics at Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ). Boyton added that the latest figures put eyes on the upcoming consumer price index, which is to be held not long before the Reserve Bank of Australia’s approaching board meeting.
Reactions from traders appeared to reveal expectations that the Reserve Banks of Australia (RBA) will likely increase rates on the back of the result. As a result, the USD fell from 63.3 against the USD, to below 63.00.
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