There was a remarkable surge in employment last month across the nation, pushing the unemployment rate down to 3.7%, a figure last seen in September of last year.
The neat figures for the government come despite high interest rates and slowing consumer demand.
Largest monthly increase since post-COVID
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), the employment sector added more than 116,000 jobs in February, marking the largest monthly increase since the post-COVID lockdown era in November 2021 and the largest non-pandemic-related gain on record.
The employment rise of 0.8% in February has been welcomed as the most substantial monthly gain since July 2000 – nearly a quarter of a century ago – following the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and preceding the Sydney Olympics-driven tourism spike.
These figures came as a surprise to economists, who had forecasted a much more modest rise of 40,000 jobs and an unemployment rate tipping 4%.
The ABS attributes February's employment boost to a larger-than-usual cohort of individuals, previously categorised as unemployed, who had jobs pending to start or return to after December and January.
Gradual slowdown in growth
The trend unemployment rate has held steady at 3.8% for six consecutive months, suggesting a gradual slowdown in employment growth since March 2023.
ABS head of labour statistics Bjorn Jarvis pointed out that this slowdown follows a period of intense labour market tightness throughout 2022-23 and emphasised the need to consider these fluctuations in the context of the broader employment landscape.
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