The U.S. Labor Market Grows Steadily / Australia’s Unemployment Rate Fell Back To 4.9% In June, Better Than Market Expectations

The U.S. Labor Market Grows Steadily

The number of new applications for unemployment benefits in the United States continued to drop to 360,000 last week, the lowest level since mid-March last year and also in line with market expectations. The previous value was 386,000. During the period, the number of people who continued to claim unemployment benefits fell by 126,000 to 3.241 million, which was lower than market expectations of 3.313 million. The data reflects the steady growth of the labor market, but the shortage of workers is making it difficult for companies to hire people or affecting productivity. However, the market estimates that after the end of the autumn unemployment compensation program, the situation may improve.

Australia’s Unemployment Rate Fell Back To 4.9% In June, Better Than Market Expectations

The Australian Bureau of Statistics announced that the local unemployment rate continued to fall to 4.9% in June, a drop of 0.2 percentage points from the previous value and better than market expectations of 5%. During the period, the employed population increased by 29,100, which was slightly less than the market’s expected 30,000. However, the total number of new jobs was increased by 51,600 for full-time employment, which may help drive overall wage performance. The Australian labor market continues to improve, and companies are willing to conduct a large number of long-term recruitment, so that the labor market gradually returns to its pre-pandemic level. However, the market estimates that because wage growth is still sluggish and facing unfavorable factors such as the spread of variant viruses, it is expected that the Bank of Australia’s dove policy stance will be difficult to change for the time being.