The Australian sharemarket reduced its gains after the release of surprisingly strong jobs data, which has increased the likelihood of an interest rate hike in February. The S&P/ASX 200 Index trimmed its intraday increase by 0.3 per cent at 11.30am AEDT following the release of the data.
According to the data, 65,200 jobs were added during the month, significantly exceeding analyst expectations, which were roughly half that amount. The unemployment rate also fell to 4.1 per cent, a notable decrease compared to the forecasted 4.4 per cent. These figures suggest a robust labour market, potentially prompting the Reserve Bank of Australia to consider raising interest rates to manage inflation.
At 11.36am AEDT, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index was up by 58 points, or 0.7 per cent, reaching 8841.10, demonstrating a partial recovery from the initial dip after the jobs data was released. Market participants are now closely watching for further economic indicators and commentary from the RBA to gauge the direction of monetary policy.
