Unemployment Up in June, But How Broken Is The ABS Data Compass?

There is a lot of kerfuffle about the latest employment statistics released today by the ABS as Australian unemployment unexpectedly climbed to a four-year high in June because hiring almost stalled. This might suggest a loosening of the labor market and bolsters the case for the Reserve Bank to reduce interest rates next month. Certainly the employment outcome was worse than expected by market economists. But before I get to the reported increase in the unemployment rate which caused many economists to reaffirm that the RBA should have cut the cash rate last week, I want to highlight this important […]