Unemployment rate slips to 4.3% in October, down from 4.5%

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Hopes of another rate cut before Christmas are now fading after today's better-than-expected jobs numbers. A bounce-back in the figures has undercut Reserve Bank forecasts pushing the prospect of further relief on interest rates well into next year.

Transcript

00:00Economists say it's a good time to be looking for a full-time gig.

00:07Full-time workers start new jobs in October and November and part-time jobs again pick up in the month of December.

00:14The latest official employment data shows the unemployment rate has dropped from 4.5% to 4.3%.

00:21Full-time jobs increased by 55,300 while part-time jobs decreased by 13,100.

00:29Retail is expected to pick up as we go into the end of the year.

00:34We've seen on SEEK, we did see a boost in that typical seasonal hiring back in August and September, ready for Christmas.

00:43The government has welcomed the figures.

00:46These jobs figures were driven particularly by an increase in full-time employment, meaning Australians are getting the hours that they need.

00:56This has also been coupled by a reduction in underemployment.

01:02Economists say the jobs market is still tight enough to keep the Reserve Bank on the interest rate sidelines a little while yet.

01:10It means mortgage borrowers might have to wait a little longer for some relief.

01:15And the risks are firmly anchored towards the rate cut being pushed further back later into the year than coming sooner.

01:22A Christmas miracle perhaps now needed for a December interest rate cut.

01:27...

01:39...

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