Unemployment rate drops to 4.9%, Dollar hits new high: Midday Roundup

The Australian unemployment rate fell to 4.9% in March, with a higher-than-expected 37,800 jobs created last month, official figures show.

The Bureau of Statistics figures exceed expectations for a 24,000 increase, and caused a jump in the Australian dollar.

The ABS said full-time employment grew by 32,100, while part-time jobs increased by 5,700.

Most economists expected the unemployment rate to stay steady at 5%.

The figures come as a Seek employment survey shows a 2.6% rise in job ads last month, and a Morgan Poll showed employment had risen 30,000 to 10.8 million in the same month.

They also come as the US awaits jobless claim figures tonight.

Australian dollars jumps to another record on jobs figures

The unemployment figures proved a catalyst for the local currency to reach another record high.

It soared to 104.78 US cents on the news, before dropping slightly in early afternoon trade.

Construction industry survey reaches two-year low

Other data out today painted a negative picture for the construction industry, with a key survey showing conditions in the sector have fallen to a two-year low.

The Australian Industry Group Australian Performance of Construction Index (Australian PCI) dropped 5.2 points to 39.4 points, well below the 50 point level which separates expansion from contraction.

The survey says steeper falls in activity, new orders and employment was behind the fall.

Australian Industry Group Director Public Policy, Peter Burn, said: “The difficulties being experienced across the construction sector show no sign of abating.”

“The continuing deterioration in the index highlights a broad-based weakening in construction industry conditions in early 2011. The steeper decline in the activity and new orders components of construction serve as just two pointers to the pulse of the domestic economy beating slower this year,” Housing Industry Association Chief Economist, Harley Dale, added.

Market flat after yesterday’s highs

After reaching a six-week high yesterday, the local market was trading flat at midday. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 was trading at 4913.1, while the broader All Ordinaries index was at 5011.3, over the psychological 5000-point mark.

Commonwealth Bank, ANZ and Rio Tinto were higher, while Telstra and BHP Billiton moved lower in morning trade.

Wall Street edges up

The flat market mirrors a slow day on Wall Street, with investors buoyed by official suggestions the US Federal Reserve would continue with its quantitative easing program.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 0.27% to 12,426.75, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index grew 0.22% to 1,335.54 and the Nasdaq Composite Index lifted 0.31% to 2,799.82.

Gold, silver, oil reach all-time highs

This follows an all-time high for the second straight day in gold, with spot gold reaching $US14691.91 an ounce as the US dipped against the euro as the market anticipates a rate rise from the European Central Bank.

Silver also reached another record.

“It is unquestionable that the demand for precious metals derives from the devaluation of the leading currencies – the dollar, the pound and the euro,” Angelos Damaskos, a fund manager at Sector Investment Managers, told Reuters.

Oil also outperformed, with Brent crude prices lifting to a two-and-a-half year high, trading above $US123 a barrel.