Australia: Unemployment rate jumps to a near 22-year high in June
Seasonally-adjusted employment soared by 210,800 in June, following a revised 264,100 jobs lost in May (previously reported: -227,700), as more people looked for a job following the re-opening of the economy from lockdown. June’s result was driven by a sharp surge in part-time employment more than offsetting declining full-time employment.
Meanwhile, the seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate climbed to 7.4% in June, from May’s 7.1%, the highest level since November 1998. Moreover, the participation rate rose by 1.3 percentage points to 64.0% in June, as more people went looking for work. Meanwhile, the seasonally-adjusted underemployment rate declined 1.4 percentage points to 11.7%, yet still 2.9 percentage points above March’s reading.