Australia’s employment change figure for April beat estimates, as it showed a 38.5K increase in hiring versus the projected 22.4K gain. This also represented a strong rebound over the earlier 5.9K drop in employment.
However, the unemployment rate climbed from a negatively revised 3.9% to 4.1% instead of holding steady, as the seasonally-adjusted participation rate improved to 66.7%.
- Employment change for April: 38.5K (22.4K expected, -5.9K previous)
- Unemployment rate for April: 4.1% (3.9% expected, previous reading revised from 3.8% to 3.9%)
- Labor force participation rate for April: 66.7% (66.6% previous)
Link to Australian Labour Force Survey for April 2024
Components of the report revealed that the gains were mostly spurred by part-time hiring, though. Full-time employment actually fell by 6.1K while part-time employment jumped 44.6K during the month.
Market Reactions
Australian Dollar vs. Major Currencies: 5-min
Overlay of AUD vs. Major Currencies: 5-min Chart by TradingView
The Aussie fell against most of its forex peers upon seeing the net weaker Australian employment situation update, likely a result of the jobs gain mix showing weakness in fulltime work and the rise in the unemployment rate, outweighing the net jobs growth.
AUD chalked up its steepest losses versus JPY, which had already been rallying prior to the release of the jobs numbers as Japan printed an upbeat preliminary GDP price index for Q1.
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