Australia’s unemployment rate to soar amid pandemic

Australia’s unemployment rate is expected to hit its largest monthly increase. The anticipated surge in joblessness was mainly from the disruptions brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, even as the country started lifting quarantine restrictions gradually.  

The frail reading will highlight the impact of the coronavirus crisis on the national economy, with sharp reversal widely speculated after two decades of continuous growth.

Sixteen analysts forecasted a total of 575,000 job losses in April, a prediction likely to drag the unemployment rate to 8.3%, the sharpest rise since 1997. The Reserve Bank of Australia had also predicted a 10% increase in unemployment, with the national economy receding to 8% in the year ended June.

“Employment will fall sharply, hours worked will plummet, the unemployment rate will spike and the participation rate is set to drop,” senior economist Gareth Aird said.