Australia employment contracted -11.5k or -0.1% mom in January, worse than expectation of 20k growth. Unemployment rate rose from 3.5% to 3.7%, above expectation of 3.5%. Participation rate dropped from 66.6% to 66.5%. Monthly hours worked dropped -2.1% mom.
ABS noted: Along with a larger-than-usual increase in unemployed people in January, there was also a similarly larger-than-usual rise in the number of unemployed people who had a job to go to in the future.
Bjorn Jarvis, ABS head of labour statistics said: “January is the most seasonal time of the year in the Australian labour market, with people leaving jobs but also getting ready to start new jobs or return from leave. This January, we saw more people than usual with a job indicating they were starting or returning to work later in the month.”
