Unemployment rate holds steady at 4.1%
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The news: The unemployment rate held steady at 4.1% in January, with the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) unveiling an 18,000 lift in total employment over the month.
The numbers: Full-time employment lifted by 50,000 people over the month, with the total result offset by a 33,000 fall in part-time employment.
The participation rate slipped by 0.6 percentage points year on year to 66.7% but was steady over the month.
Underemployment increased to 5.9% in January, up from 5.7% in December.
Youth underemployment lifted 1 percentage point over the month to 14.8%, reversing a fall recorded in December.
The context: The jobs market is one of several critical indicators the Reserve Bank is watching closely as it determines whether more rate rises are justified. The jobs figures for January are not hugely different to the expectations from economists, who had been eyeing a 20,000 lift in jobs and a 4.2% unemployment rate.
The figures show the jobs market remains tight, though, putting additional importance on upcoming inflation figures.
What they said: "This month fewer people reported working less hours than typical Januarys due to being on leave. This contributed to hours worked growing more strongly than employment," ABS head of labour statistics Sean Crick said.
"On average, part-time employed persons worked more hours this month, with part-time hours worked per person increasing by 0.8%. However, the total number of part-time hours worked only rose 0.1%, with the number of people employed part-time falling 0.7%," Crick said.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the data "is yet another reminder of the resilience of our labour market at a challenging time for the global economy".
He said in a statement the jobless figures are "very low levels by historical standards and participation remains close to record highs".
The source: Australian Bureau of Statistics media release
