Australian unemployment at 2009 high

Clouds are massing on Australian economy as data showed unemployment rate soared to the highest in almost 4 years, underscoring the challenge for the newly-appointed Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, as his re-election pitch was centred on economic management. According to data from the statistics bureau in Sydney, the overall jobless rate climbed to 5.7% in June, hitting September 2009 high, and up from a revised 5.6% a month earlier, as more people sought work. Analysts, however, expected no change in the unemployment rate. The number of people employed jumped by 10,300 from May, when companies cut a revised 700 workers, as full-time jobs fell by 4,000, while part-time employment dropped by 14,800. Data also showed that the participation rate, which takes into account the number of people working or looking for a job, climbed from 65.2% up to 65.3%. 

The Australian Bureau of Statistics also said that the real unemployment is almost double the official figure, with 13% of Australians looking for a job. The 13.1% rate of extended labour rate in August 2012 was even more than double the official rate of 5%. The ABS also stressed out that almost a third of 15 to 19-year olds and around 20% of young Australians between 20 and 24 are currently out of work.