WA jobless rate falls again as state economy leads the nation

Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show the seasonally-adjusted unemployement rate fell 0.2 of a percentage point in November, to 4.5 per cent.

It mirrored a national trend, but WA remains the only state with a jobless rate below 5 per cent.

In a reversal of October's figures, it was a drop in the female unemployment rate which contributed to the overall fall for November.

The female jobless rate fell 0.4 of a percentage point, or about 2200, to 5.1 per cent, as an extra 6000 women were employed.

While 3000 more WA men were in the workforce in November, the male unemployment rate actually increased 0.1 of a point, to 4.1 per cent, as 400 men were added to those officially classed as jobless.

Much of the WA turnaround was due to a surge in full-time jobs. About 18,500 more full time positions were created in November, marking a shift away from part-time work.

National jobs surge

Meanwhile, Australia's overall jobless rate fell to 5.2 per cent in November, with the economy creating the most jobs since January as employers gained confidence heading towards the year's end, according to official data released today.

The seasonally adjusted rate compares with a 5.4 per cent unemployment rate in October. Economists had expected the latest data, for November, to come in at 5.2 per cent.

The Australian dollar jumped more than half a US cent on the news that the economy had added a total of 54,600 positions in November, or almost triple the 20,000 net jobs expected by analysts. The dollar rose as high as 98.60 US cents in recent trading.

"The real stand out is the continued strength of full-time jobs growth," said Macquarie senior economist Brian Redican. "These are extraordinary gains we’ve had over the last 12 months."

Mr Redican said the jobs numbers increase the chances that the Reserve Bank will raise interest rates again soon.

"I think market has been far too complacent about the risk of a rate hike in early 2011," he said, adding that the RBA may hike rates as soon as its next scheduled meeting in February.

All of those jobs were full time, with employers adding 55,100 such jobs while shedding some 400 part-time positions for the month.

Surprising strength

The strength of the labour market has been one of the most consistent - and surprising - features of Australia's recovery since the depths of the global financial crisis.

Expected pressure for higher wages was also one of the reasons why the Reserve Bank acted last month to raise interest rates even with large parts of the economy remaining weak, such as housing starts and retail sales.

Australia's economy has added more than 365,000 jobs so far in 2010, with only February posting a drop in the past 15 months.

Recruitment specialists WHR Solutions said they have seen solid demand for new employees among their clients.

"We’ve seen steady activity across all sectors, especially as the passive candidate workforce is not worried about job security like it was three to six months ago,” said general manager Michael Harvey. “The current market is buoyant."

“Some sectors are already experiencing very tight candidate markets - especially around the engineering, mining and health sectors,” said Mr Harvey.

Participation record

The latest labour force figures also show the participation rate - the proportion of the population looking for work or already employed - rose to a fresh monthly record of 66.1 per cent, beating the previous month's high of 65.9 per cent.

"Most impressively, the unemployment rate fell even as the participation rate rocketed to a new record-high of 66.1 per cent," said Moody's Economy analyst Matthew Circosta.

"As we have been noting extensively, the strong labour market will see the Reserve Bank maintain a tightening bias in the year ahead and is one of the major sources of inflation pressure," Mr Circosta said.

The jobless rate moved closer to the 4.75 per cent economists view as signalling full employment for the economy - a shift that would have been closer still if not for the jump in the participation rate in recent months.

Australia's unemployment rate compares with 9.8 per cent in the US, and more than 10.1 per cent in the euro zone and 7.7 per cent in the UK.

Stocks also jumped on the jobs news. The S&P/ASX200 benchmark share index leapt 20 points to 4740.5 after the release of the data, to be 40 points, or 0.9 per cent higher for the day.

Tassie misses out

All the states except Tasmania posted a drop in their unemployment rate.

New South Wales' jobless rate fell to a seasonally adjusted 5.1 per cent in November from 5.4 per cent in October. In Victoria, the jobless rate eased to 5.5 per cent from 5.6 per cent in the same period.

In Queensland, the rate slid to 5.5 per cent from 5.6 per cent. In South Australia, the unemployment rate fell to 5.6 per cent from 5.7 per cent.

But in Tasmania, the unemployment rate ticked up to 5.4 per cent from 5.2 per cent.