Australian Jobs

Not good:

The first response that I've had so far is that unemployment came in at 5.2%, better than the 5.3% forecast. However, this is explained by a fall in the participation rate from 65.5% to 65.2%.

The real killer was a 53,700 fall in part time employment vs. an expected decline of 8,800. This reflects the ongoing weakness in retail.

The RBA's rate cuts are being validated.