Financial Wire

Australian Unemployment Rate Holds Steady in April

-- Australia's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate logged at 4.3% in March, unchanged from March, reported the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on Thursday.

The nation's labor participation rate, that is the percent of adults working or seeking work, also remained unchanged in March from February, at 66.8%.

Likewise, the employment-to-population ratio remained at 64.0%, unchanged in March from the previous month.

In March, there were 14.76 million people employed in Australia, up 0.2% on month and up 1.4% on year, reported the ABS.

In somewhat better news, the cumulative number of hours worked by all employees in Australia in March rose 0.2% on month and 2.0% on year, said the ABS.

Australia's employment picture may remain largely unchanged through 2026, if a recent forecast from the nation's central bank holds water.

In February, the Reserve Bank of Australia said it expects Australian gross domestic product (GDP) expand by about 1.8% in 2026, undergirded by household consumption and public spending.

The nation's unemployment rate should end the year near 4.3%, the same as the April rate, according to the RBA forecast.

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加拿大独立企业联合会(CFIB)表示,燃油成本已成为加拿大近四分之三小型企业面临的首要成本制约因素。

根据加拿大独立企业联合会(CFIB)周四发布的最新月度商业晴雨表,燃油成本已成为制约企业增长的首要成本因素,影响到近四分之三的企业。 CFIB指出,燃油成本的月度涨幅最大,仅4月份就上涨了20个百分点。 事实上,CFIB表示,对燃油成本的担忧在短短两个月内翻了一番,从2月份的36%攀升至4月份的74%。 CFIB月度商业晴雨表的其他主要结论包括:4月份平均价格上涨计划跃升至3.2%,这是自去年3月与美国爆发关税战以来最大的月度涨幅;继3月份大幅下滑之后,4月份小企业长期乐观情绪小幅回升至58.5个百分点。

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