Australia's employment change figures for April beat estimates, showing a 38.5k increase in employment versus an expected increase of 22.4k. This also represents a strong rebound compared to the previous 5.9K decline in employment.
However, the unemployment rate rose from a negatively adjusted 3.9% to 4.1% instead of holding steady, as the seasonally adjusted participation rate improved to 66.7%.
- April Employment Change: 38.5K (22.4K expected, -5.9K previous)
- April unemployment rate: 4.1% (3.9% expected, previous reading revised from 3.8% to 3.9%)
- Labor force participation rate for April: 66.7% (previously 66.6%)
Link to the Australian Labor Force Survey April 2024
Components of the report revealed that gains were mostly driven by part-time employment. Full-time employment fell by 6.1K while part-time employment jumped by 44.6K during the month.
Market reactions
Australian dollar against major currencies: 5 minutes
Overlay view of the Australian dollar against the major currencies: 5 minutes Chart by TradingView
The Australian dollar rose slightly against most of its foreign currency counterparts after seeing key employment change results stronger than expected, but the currency quickly turned on its heels and was sold off across the board as markets digested the downbeat fundamental data.
The Australian dollar posted its biggest losses against the Japanese yen, which was already rising ahead of the jobs numbers release as Japan published an upbeat preliminary GDP price index for the first quarter.
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