Unemployment rate steady in June at 4.4pc

Australia's unemployment rate remained at 4.4 per cent in June, in seasonally adjusted terms.Data show 76,000 extra people gained employment last month, driven by a 47,000-person rise in part-time employment.That increase in part-time employment saw the underemployment rate pick up from 6.3 to 6.5 per cent.In trend terms, the unemployment rate also remained steady at 4.4 per cent.Economists say the labour market looks resilient in the face of slowing growth, rising inflation, and higher interest rates.But some say the unemployment rate will increase again in coming months as the longer-term effects of the Iran war play out in Australia's economy."We expect the unemployment rate to rise to 4.6 per cent by the end of the year," said Harry McAuley, economist for Oxford Economics Australia."However, a renewal of hostilities in the Strait of Hormuz presents a significant risk to the outlook."