Unemployment Falls to 3.8%

More fantastic! economic news, from StatsNZ:

Unemployment Rate Falls to 3.8 Percent

Results of the September 2004 quarter Household Labour Force Survey (HLFS) show a continuation of the labour market strength observed in recent quarters. This is reflected in strong employment growth of 0.9 percent, a fall in the unemployment rate to 3.8 percent and increasing labour force participation.

The strong growth in employment this quarter is consistent with recent trends and was marked by an increase in seasonally adjusted female employment of 1.8 percent, while male employment was essentially flat (up 0.3 percent). As in recent quarters, there was strong growth in seasonally adjusted full-time employment this quarter. Part-time employment decreased marginally over the quarter, after a slight increase last quarter.

The total labour force grew by 15,000 over the quarter. This increase was larger than the quarterly growth of 9,200 in the working-age population, leading to a fall in the number of people not in the labour force and an increase in the labour force participation rate. However, the increase in the total labour force has not been as large as the increase in employment, resulting in the further tightening of the labour market observed over the quarter.

The number of people unemployed fell by a similar amount to recent quarters and, combined with the labour force growth, resulted in the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate falling to the lowest level it has been since the survey began in March 1986. In the trend series, the unemployment rate has fallen steadily since September 1998, with the exception of one quarter.

Over the year to September 2004, unadjusted unemployment rates have fallen for the European/Päkehä and Mäori ethnic groups, but increased for the Pacific peoples and 'Other' groups. Unadjusted unemployment rates in the September 2004 quarter stood at 8.3 percent for Mäori, 7.7 percent for Pacific peoples, 6.5 percent for the 'Other' ethnic group, and 2.6 percent for the European/Päkehä ethnic group.

Brian Pink
Government Statistician

Once again it is the trifecta - unemployment fell, employment rose and labour force participation increased.  More details in Hot Off The Press.  This helps explain why income tax revenue is growing so strongly - 200,000 more people are working than were working in 1999.  That is a ~12% increase in the number of people in work.  Unemployment has fallen from 7.2% to 3.8%...

What great news to take into Conference...

Comments

[Idiot/Savant]

Good news indeed. But I'm sure National will find a cloud to wrap around that silver lining. Higher wages causing inflation, perhaps?

[Jordan]

If not that, then skills shortages.... blah.

[Tristan]

if i hear brash talk about inflation i bloody throw more than mud at him!

it was he who decided that inflation was more important than unemployment, that inflation was more important than the poverty line...

IT WAS HIM WHO DECIDED THAT INFLATION WAS MORE IMPORTANT THAT CHILDREN LIVING ON POOR HOUSING, CONTRACTING RUMATIC FEVER AND 25 PERCENT OF THEM DYING BECAUSE BLOODY INFLATION WAS MORE IMPORTANT...

if that man mentions the word inflation... he's a dead man!

[Jordan]

Tristan! Temper!! I assume you are not serious, otherwise I might have to delete this...

[Stephen Cooper]

The Communist party tried to take Boris Yeltsin to court on genocide charges, for presiding over the biggest decline in lining conditions in a peacetime country in human history.

The average lifespan of a Russian man went for 69 years to 53 years in the time of Yeltsins reign.

The case was of course rejected, but I wonder if a similar kind of accusation could be levelled at Brash and the National government, that they caused damage to our society through poor and ruthless economic policy.

[Chris]

And the relevance of the Russian comment was....?

Has it occured to you that once communism was out of the way, accurate figures were actually recorded (or at least more accurate). No offence but the communist party's record for truth is not a good one.

[sagenz]

hahahahahaha - National and Roger Douglas are responsible for setting economic conditions up for the run of good news. Cullen raised taxes, helengrad made it more difficult to employ people. and the left are taking credit and blaming National?????

[Asher]

something tells me thats not actually Jordan...just a funny feeling.

[sagenz]

no. I think it sounds like jordan;)

[span(ner in the works)]

i wonder if jordan is at conference has any more inner thoughts to reveal... ;-)

[Jordan]

That comment's gone, whoever it was.