NZ jobless at 10-year low
New Zealand’s jobless rate fell to its lowest level in almost a decade in the first quarter while wage inflation remained anaemic, adding to the view that the central bank will continue to signal no increase in interest rates in next week’s review.
The unemployment rate dropped to 4.4 per cent in the three months ended March 31, down from 4.5 per cent in December, Statistics New Zealand said in its household labour force survey.
It was below the 4.5 per cent forecast in a Bloomberg poll of 13 economists and was the lowest since December 2008 when it was also 4.4 per cent.
The number of employed people rose 0.6 per cent in the quarter to 2.62 million and was 3.1 per cent higher than a year earlier.
The quarterly lift was in line with expectations. Compared with the same quarter a year earlier, employment growth was strongest in Auckland and Otago.
The Reserve Bank releases its monetary policy statement next week and is expected to keep interest rates on hold at a record low 1.75 per cent.
It is now required to pay greater attention to employment after Finance Minister Grant Robertson and new governor Adrian Orr signed a new policy targets agreement (PTA) that adds the goal of “supporting maximum levels of sustainable employment within the economy” to the existing goal of price stability. — BusinessDesk