2018.08.1521:48:00UTC+00Australia Unemployment Rate Falls To 5.3% In July

The unemployment rate in Australia came in at a seasonally adjusted 5.3 percent in July, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday.

That beat forecasts for 5.4 percent, which would have been unchanged from June.

The Australian economy shed 3,900 jobs last month - well shy of forecasts for the addition of 15,000 following the gain of 50,900 in the previous month.

The participation rate fell to 65.5 percent - also missing forecasts for 65.7 and down from the downwardly revised 65.6 percent a month earlier (originally 65.7 percent).