2018.02.1420:00:00UTC+00Australia Jobless Rate Eases To 5.5% In January

The unemployment rate in Australia came in at a seasonally adjusted 5.5 percent in January, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday.

That was in line with expectations following the upwardly revised 5.6 percent reading in December (originally 5.5 percent).

The Australian economy added 16,000 jobs last month - beating forecasts for 15,000 following the downwardly revised 33,500 increase in the previous month (originally 34,700).

The participation rate came in at 65.6 percent - matching expectations and down from 65.7 percent a month earlier.