New Zealand Q1 employment report impresses NZD/USD buyers

Statistics New Zealand unveils the first quarter (Q1) 2023 employment report around 22:45 GMT on Tuesday to entertain the NZD/USD traders. The headline results are as follows:

• New Zealand Unemployment Rate Q1: 3.4% (estimated 3.5%; previous 3.4%).
• Employment Change (QoQ) Q1: 0.8% (expected 0.4%; prior 0.2%).
• Labor Cost Index (YoY) Q1: 4.5% (market forecasts 4.6%; prior 4.3%).
• Participation Rate Q1: 72.0% (anticipated to remain unchanged at 71.7%)

NZD/USD reaction

Following the updates New Zealand (NZ) employment report, the NZD/USD pair extends the previous day’s run-up towards refreshing a two-week top near 0.6223, before retreating to 0.6212 by the press time. The reason for the Kiwi pair’s latest hesitance in cheering the upbeat employment data could be linked to the the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s (RBNZ) bi-annual Financial Stability Report (FSR), as well as cautious mood ahead of the top-tier data/events from the US.

Also read: RBNZ FSR: New Zealand financial system resilient but household pressures growing

NZD/USD: 15-minute chart

Trend: Further upside expected

About New Zealand unemployment rate and employment change

The quarterly report on New Zealand's Unemployment Rate and Employment Change is being released by Statistics New Zealand.

The unemployment rate is the number of unemployed workers divided by the total civilian labor force. If the rate is up, it indicates a lack of expansion within the New Zealand labor market. As a result, a rise leads to weaken the New Zealand economy. A decrease of the figure is seen as positive (or bullish) for the NZD, while an increase is seen as negative (or bearish).

On the other hand, employment change is a measure of the change in the number of employed people in New Zealand. Generally speaking, a rise in this indicator has positive implications for consumer spending which stimulates economic growth. A high reading is seen as positive (or bullish) for the NZ dollar, while a low reading is seen as negative (or bearish).