Around 76,300 Australians gained a job in June, well above market expectations, while the unemployment rate held steady at 4.4%.

That’s because the participation rate – which measures the share of working-age Australians either working or looking for work – jumped to 67% in June from 66.7%. People aged 55–64 had the largest annual growth in the participation rate, up 0.8 percentage points to 70.6%.

That combination of more people in new jobs, balanced by more people also looking for work, kept the unemployment rate unchanged.

With inflation figures due out next Wednesday, today’s jobs update is one of the last major releases of economic data before the Reserve Bank of Australia’s August meeting to decide on whether to change interest rates. Together, they’ll provide important snapshots of the economy before the RBA announces its rates decision on August 11.

The strength in the labour market suggests it may prove resilient to any further interest rate rises. Following the jobs news, financial markets increased their expectations of a rate rise in August to more than one in three.

How the jobs market has changed in 2026

Unemployment has risen slightly over the past six months, up from 4.1% in December last year.

But the latest figures confirm businesses are........

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