Australia’s National Unemployment Rate Rises to 18-month High Amid Downturn

Published on December 14, 2023

Australia’s unemployment rate has risen to an 18-month high of 1.5 percent in November, up by 0.1 percentage points from 3.8 percent in October, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS.) Bjorn Jarvis, ABS head of labour statistics, suggests the labour market is starting to loosen after a prolonged period of stable employment.  “The recent slowdown in hours worked over the past six months continued into November, with the total number of hours worked now around where it had been back in May. However, this follows very strong growth during late 2022 and early 2023,” Mr. Jarvis said.  “The slowing in hours means that overall growth rates in employment and hours worked are now similar over the past 18 months. The narrowing gap between these two growth rates suggests that the labour market is now less tight than it has been.”...

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