Unemployment rate rises faster than expected

Unemployment jumped at the end of 2018, as the number of new jobs being created slowed.

Statistics New Zealand said yesterday that unemployment climbed to 4.3 per cent in December, up from a revised 4 per cent in September.

When the September figures were originally announced, the department had estimated unemployment had dropped to 3.9 per cent, which was the lowest level in a decade. The news was celebrated by the Government.

The New Zealand dollar fell on the latest figures, as the market bets on whether the figures make an interest rate cut from the Reserve Bank more likely.

Most of the climb in the number of unemployed – which rose by 10,000 to 120,000 – was due to unemployed men.

The number of men unemployed rose by 8000 to 65,000, while the number of unemployed women rose by 2000 to 55,000. For the first time since 2010, men (4.4 per cent) are now more likely to be unemployed than women (4.2 per cent), Statistics NZ said.

Economists had expected a small increase in the unemployment rate, after a sharp drop in September, but not to the degree the household labour force survey revealed.

ANZ, which had forecast that the jobless rate would climb to 4.1 per cent, said the overall picture was softer than expected.

‘‘It looks like the best that the labour market has to offer is behind us,’’ ANZ senior economist Liz Kendall said.

Employment Minister Willie Jackson focused on lower unemployment for women and Ma¯ ori since the coalition Government took office. ‘‘We are confident that in this strong economy, if we continue to listen to employers . . . many people looking for work will find more opportunities to do so,’’ he said.