Australia’s reputation as the best-performing economy in the world has been underlined by new employment figures, showing the unemployment rate fell from 5.8% to 5.7% in October.
Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows the economy added a total of 31,200 jobs last month. Importantly, 30,800 of them were full-time positions.
“Australia has lived up to its reputation as the ‘wonder from Down Under’,” CommSec economist Craig James says.
“The economy may not yet be going gangbusters but Australia clearly has the strongest economy in the developed world. Over the last three months just over 95,000 jobs have been created.”
James says the lift in employment is good news for job seekers, but also for those already in work.
“Employers were forced to trim working hours and wage increases over the past year, but with the economy picking up momentum, employees will be more fully employed and better compensated.”
Retailers will also welcome the news coming into the Christmas period, with consumers cautious about job security now likely to be willing to open their wallets.
There is one downside to the strong employment data – further interest rate hikes early in 2010 are now even more likely.
Most economists are tipping 25 basis points rises in both February and March (there is no meeting in January) although James argues the RBA will want to sustain the recovery and not risk snuffing it out.
James was the editor and publisher of SmartCompany and LeadingCompany for five years. He is now the Australian Financial Review‘s companies & markets editor, and a former BRW editor.
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