Australian employers added more jobs than expected in August, sending the unemployment rate down, data released today by the official statistics office showed on Thursday.
The news sent the nation’s currency and stocks higher on speculation that the Reserve Bank of Australia will resume raising interest rates.
The Australian unemployment rate declined to 5.1% in August, according to data released Thursday by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, a drop that surpassed economist expectations.
Australia's unemployment rate decreased 0.2% over the month. Economists had expected a drop to 5.2%.
The number of people employed in the country rose by 30,900 to 11,272 million on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the data. The number of people unemployed decreased by 22,500 people to 607,700 in the month.
The Australian dollar rose 0.3% to 92.13 US cents from 91.71 cents after the numbers were announced. Stocks also advanced, with the S&P/ASX 200 index rising 0.8% to 4,616.