Australia 10-year bond yield jumps 4 bps after Aussie jobs report

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reported a sustained labor market strength in March, lifting the 10-year treasury yield higher by 4 basis points. 

As of writing, the benchmark yield is trading at 1.98 percent, having hit a session high of 1.987 percent. 

Australia’s economy added 25,700 jobs in March - far more than the expected print of 12,000. More importantly, the full-time employment surged to 48,300, having dropped by 7,300 in February, the ABS data released at 02:00 GMT showed. 

Even so, the jobless rate ticked higher to 5 percent as expected with the participation rate rising to 65.7 percent from 65.6 percent. The part-time jobs dropped by 22,600 following an 11,900 increase in February. 

The upbeat jobs report could alleviate pressure on the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) to cut rates in the second half of this year. 

A significant majority of analysts reportedly expects the RBA to sit on the current 1.5% rate until there is clearer evidence that the job market is suffering.