The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate held steady at 4.2 per cent in August, according to data released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
Economists had expected 21,000 jobs to be added, with the jobless rate remaining unchanged.
ABS head of labour statistics Sean Crick said employment fell by 5,000 while the number of unemployed decreased by 1,000 over the month.
“This meant that the unemployment rate remained steady at 4.2 per cent whilst the participation rate fell by 0.1 percentage points to 66.8 per cent,” he said.
The employment-to-population ratio fell by 0.1 percentage points to 64.0 per cent.
A fall in full-time employment (-41,000 people) drove the overall drop in employment numbers. Meanwhile, part-time employment saw a 36,000 person rise.
Females who were employed full-time went down 30,000 people, and males in full-time employment was down by 11,000.
There was a rise in part-time employment for both females and males, up 18,000 and 17,000 respectively.
More to come.
