Unemployment falls below 5 per cent for the first time in a decade

Unemployment falls below 5 per cent for the first time in a decade – stirring fears of an early interest rate rise

  • Unemployment in June fell to 4.9 per cent- the lowest level since June 2011

Australia’s unemployment rate has fallen below 5 per cent for the first time in a decade.

The jobless level fell to 4.9 per cent in June, a level unseen since June 2011, the Australian Bureau of Statistics has revealed.

The Reserve Bank of Australia wants unemployment to fall below 5 per cent before it considers raising interest rates from a record-low of 0.1 per cent.

Governor Philip Lowe has previously said the cash rate would not increase until 2024 ‘at the earliest’ but a lower jobless rate could see monetary policy tightened if it leads to wage inflation sooner. 

Australia’s unemployment rate has fallen below 5 per cent for the first time in a decade. The jobless level fell to 4.9 per cent in June, a level unseen since June 2011. Pictured is a customer at Bankstown in Sydney’s south-west