Australia: The devil is in the details

• Unemployment rate fell to a three-year low of 5.7% in July
• A net of 26.2K workers found jobs in July vs. 10.2K expected, 10.8K in June
• Labor force participation rate unchanged at 64.9%
• Monthly hours worked rose by 0.2%

Headline job numbers from Australia printed a strong picture, with the unemployment rate falling and net jobs and monthly hours increasing. However, a closer look tells us that the jobs increase came from 71,600 part-time workers, as full-time employment actually dipped by 45,400 for the month. Analysts also point out that the surge in part-time work might have something to do with the extended tallying from the latest elections.
The gloomy details failed to sustain the Aussie’s gains throughout the day. The comdoll ended up erasing most (if not all) of its gains against its major counterparts and is even trading at new weekly lows as of writing. Yikes!