Dollar surges as unemployment falls
The Australian dollar has surged through the US94 cent mark after new figures showed the nation's jobless rate dropping in March.
The bureau of statistics reported unemployment fell 0.2 percentage points to 5.8 per cent last month.
It came despite a 22,100 fall in the number of people with full-time work. Part-time employment jumped by 40,200.
The fall in unemployment was also driven by a 0.2 per cent drop in the participation rate.
In WA, the unemployment rate fell a full percentage point to 4.9 per cent.
But the figures also showed a sharp fall in full-time employment in WA by 7,100.
And the participation rate, which measures those in and looking for work, fell by half a percentage point in a sign that discouraged workers dropped out of the jobs market altogether.
The more stable trend measure of unemployment continued to climb and now stands at 5.3 per cent.
Elsewhere, unemployment rose in Tasmania (to 7.5 per cent) and South Australia (7.1 per cent).
It fell in the Northern Territory (3.8 per cent), the ACT (to 3.4 per cent), Queensland (6.1 per cent) and NSW (5.3 per cent) while it was steady in Victoria at 6.4 per cent.
The national figure was much better than expected, with analysts tipping an increase in the jobless rate.
This helped rally the Australian dollar which had been trading below US94 cents ahead of the release.
ENDS
