High Unemployment Because of Soaring Interest Rates and Inflation: Treasurer

Published on February 15, 2024

Australia’s treasurer has linked the latest spike in unemployment, the highest in two years, to the “inevitable” consequences of soaring interest rates and inflation on the economy. Australia’s unemployment rate surged to 4.1 percent in January, up from 3.9 percent in December, surpassing the 4 percent mark for the first time since January 2022. About 22,000 more people were unemployed, with only 481 jobs added, far below the expected 25,000 additional jobs, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). “This is the inevitable consequence of higher interest rates and persistent inflation and global economic uncertainty,” Treasurer Jim Chalmers said in Canberra. “Because of the pressures that people are under, the pressures our economy is under and indeed the global economy as well, those are largely the reasons for the tick up in the unemployment rate we see today.”...

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