The Australian Bureau of Statistics has reported 20,300 people lost work in March, pushing up the jobless rate by 0.1 percentage point but cautioned the full impact of the coronavirus would be clearer in the April figures
"Today's data shows some small early impact from COVID-19 on the Australian labour market in early March, but any impact from the major COVID-19-related actions will be evident in the April data," he said.
"The survey data that underpins the release was gathered in the first two weeks of the month, before the major restrictions on activity were put in place; we’ll have to wait until next month to get a clearer idea of the impact on the labour market," she said. NAB economist Kaixin Owyong said as the jobs survey was taken between March 1 and 14, the full impact of the coronavirus shutdowns had been missed.
"Widespread reports of workers being stood down and hours being cut as businesses grapple with a sharp pullback in demand for their goods and services should result in a collapse in hours worked and a sharp rise in underemployment."as social distancing restrictions and travel bans were put in place.
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