Australia’s Unemployment Rate Continues Steady Rise

SYDNEY—Australia’s unemployment rate continued to rise in October, potentially ruling out a further hike in interest rates in December.

The jobless rate climbed to 3.7% in October from 3.6% in September, despite employment jumping by 55,000 over the month, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said Thursday.

The rise in the unemployment rate was expected by economists, but the jump in employment was more than twice the consensus estimate for a 20,000 increase.

The labor force participation rate rose to 67.0% in October from 66.8% in September, the ABS said.

The solid gain in employment in October follows news on Wednesday that wages grew at their fastest pace in more than a quarter of a century in the third quarter as a big rise in the minimum wage helped drive broad strength in new wage agreements.

Still, neither the employment gains nor the rising momentum in wages are likely to be enough to spark a further rise in interest rates at the RBA’s next policy meeting in early December.

The central bank is likely to look at the level of the official cash rate again in February when it reviews its economic forecasts and has seen another quarter of inflation data.

The RBA raised interest rates last week for the first time since June and left open the prospect of further increases if inflation pressures remain resilient. The central bank also revised up its forecasts for inflation in 2024 and 2025.

“It’s a very solid jobs report, highlighting continued tightness in the labor market and illustrating the dilemma the RBA faces as it looks to end its rate hike cycle in line with its global central bank peers,” said Tony Sycamore, market analyst at IG.

“While we don’t think today’s jobs [data] will prompt the RBA to raise rates next month, the RBA will need to see labor market and inflation data ease in the coming months to avoid having to raise rates early in 2024,” he added.

The large increase in employment in October followed a small increase in September of around 8,000 people, the ABS said.

The annual growth rate in hours worked fell to 1.7% in October, down from growth of around 5.0% in the middle of the year, showing that the job market is slowly losing momentum.

The underemployment rate remained at 6.3% in October, the ABS said. While this was 0.4 percentage points higher than October last year, the result was still around 2.4 percentage points lower than before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Luxury watch anniversaries often produce overtly nostalgic designs. Rolex has taken a more restrained route for the centenary of the Oyster, translating references to its 1926 breakthrough into a contemporary Oyster Perpetual 41 rather than reproducing a historic model.

The original Rolex Oyster is central to the company’s mythology. Introduced in 1926, it was presented as the first waterproof wristwatch, using a hermetically sealed case to protect the movement from water and dust. The architecture would go on to underpin the professional and everyday watches that built Rolex’s global reputation.

One hundred years later, the new Oyster Perpetual 41 carries details intended to echo that origin. Rolex describes the model as a centenary tribute and positions it within the direct line of descendants from the first Oyster. The appeal is not a conspicuous anniversary inscription, but the idea that an apparently simple three-hand watch embodies a century of incremental refinement.

Hans Waldorf, the founder of Rolex and Tudor. Image credit: Rolex

At 41 millimetres, it has the scale expected of the modern Oyster Perpetual line. The case, bracelet and automatic movement follow Rolex’s familiar formula: robust construction, legibility and an absence of unnecessary complication. That simplicity is precisely what gives the model breadth. It can serve as a first serious watch, an understated daily piece or a historically meaningful addition to a larger collection.

The launch also arrives as Rolex strengthens its Superlative Chronometer certification. The company says its 2026 standard expands the testing framework with additional criteria addressing magnetism, reliability and sustainability. Buyers should treat those claims as manufacturer specifications until independent long-term testing becomes available, but the change shows where major watchmakers see the next contest for credibility: not only accuracy, but resilience over years of ownership.

For collectors, the centenary context will be the headline. For everyone else, the attraction is more elemental. The Oyster Perpetual has no rotating bezel, chronograph registers or calendar window demanding attention. It is Rolex reduced to its essentials — waterproof case, automatic movement, clear dial and a design intended to outlast fashion.

That makes the 100th-anniversary model a fitting tribute. The original Oyster was important because it made a wristwatch more usable in daily life. A century later, Rolex is celebrating it with a watch designed around the same promise.

About Rolex

Hans Wilsdorf was a German-born watchmaker and entrepreneur, best known for founding Rolex and Tudor. Pioneering innovations like the waterproof Oyster case (1926) and self-winding Perpetual rotor (1931), he transformed wristwatches into precise, durable luxury items.

A master marketer, he introduced brand ambassadors and global expansion strategies. In 1945, he created the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation, ensuring Rolex’s profits support philanthropic causes beyond his death in 1960.