CANBERRA, Australia, June 7 (UPI) -- Official figures put unemployment in Australia at 4.2 percent -- a 32-year low.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics says employment rose by a seasonally-adjusted 39,400 in May, with full-time jobs surging by 66,800.
These numbers surprised economists and analysts who had predicted a more modest increase in full-time employment of about 10,000.
Analysts now believe the exceptionally strong job market will put more pressure for a raise in interest rates.
On the foreign exchange market, the results sent the Aussie dollar to a 17-year high against the greenback at 84.65 U.S. cents.
Prime Minister John Howard, who is trailing in the polls ahead of a general election later this year, said the latest jobs figures were "wonderful."
"There's no better thing a government can do than to run an economy so that people who want to work can get it," he told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.
