Australia’s unemployment rate rises to 4.2% in July, even as employers add more than 58,000 jobs

Australia’s jobless rate rose to 4.2% in July, despite employers adding about three times more jobs than expected. Photograph: Carly Earl/The Guardian

Australia’s unemployment rate ticked higher last month, even as employers added about three times as many jobs as expected. The job gains will probably discourage the Reserve Bank from cutting its key interest rate in the near term.

The jobless rate in July rose to 4.2%, seasonally adjusted, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported on Thursday. Economists had expected the rate to remain in line with June’s 4.1% level for June.