breakingAustralian jobs: Unemployment rises to 4.5 per cent for SeptemberMatt MckenzieThe NightlyThu, 16 October 2025 8:51AMCommentsCommentsEmail Matt Mckenzie
Australia’s jobless rate has lifted to 4.5 per cent in September, the highest level in nearly four years.
That was up from 4.3 per cent in the previous month, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics data released on Thursday. Economists had tipped the September rate would be 4.3 per cent.
Yet employment also increased by 14,900 roles as the country’s population and labour force grow.
“This is the highest seasonally adjusted unemployment rate recorded since November 2021,” ABS head of labour statistics Sean Crick said.
The numbers will potentially leave the Reserve Bank squeezed between signs of rising inflation and a jobs market that is softening faster than expected.
Financial markets had on Tuesday night estimated the chances of a rate cut at the Reserve Bank’s November meeting as 44 per cent.
Analysis by the International Monetary Fund released predicted 3 per cent inflation in Australia next year — the fifth-fastest pace among advanced economics.
That’s at the top of the Reserve Bank’s target zone.
Headline inflation will be artificially high in coming months as taxpayer-funded energy bill relief ends.
But the forecast followed warnings by the Reserve Bank on Tuesday that cost-of-living pressure might keep interest rates on hold longer.
Minutes from the RBA’s September meeting — when the cash rate was kept on hold at 3.6 per cent — showed the central bank’s board was worried staff may have underestimated improving consumer spending, the resilient jobs market, and the difficulty of landing a death blow on inflation.
More to come
Get the latest news from thewest.com.au in your inbox.
Sign up for our emails
Read more on The West Australian
