New Zealand Unemployment beats forecasts, NZD firms

New Zealand Unemployment beat forecasts which are supporting the NZD/USD rate that trades 0.15% on the day so far. 

The New Zealand Unemployment rate for the third quarter (Q3) arrived at 3.4% vs the estimated 3.9% and previous 4.0%.

The New Zealand Employment Change (Q/Q) Q3 came in at 2.0% vs the estimated 0.4% and the prior 1.0%; with the previous revised to 1.1%).

Meanwhile, the New Zealand Average Hourly Earnings (Q/Q) Q3 came in at 1.2% vs the estimated 1.5% and the previous 0.7%.

The Kiwi started the day off lower as the currency tracked a lower Aussie following the Reserve Bank of Australia saying that it was prepared to be patient.

''That looks to have caught a market looking for a more upbeat tone off guard, and the AUD slipped. From here on in, it’s up to the data, and the outlook could change quickly, as it did here,'' analysts at ANZ Bank said.

However, this labour market data is likely going to help stop the rot in NZD for the session ahead, especially with the Participation Rate jumping to 71.2% from 70.5% prior. 

About the Unemployment Rate

The Unemployment Rate released by the Statistics New Zealand 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).