New Zealand’s jobless rate rose to the highest in nine years in the third quarter as the weak economy made firms reluctant to take on new workers.
Unemployment climbed to 5.3% from 5.2% in the second quarter, Statistics New Zealand said Wednesday in Wellington. That matched economists’ median estimate and was the highest since the fourth quarter of 2016. Employment was unchanged from the previous three months, weaker than the estimated 0.1% increase.