WA Economic Profile for January 2018

Main updates this month

Labour market

• Western Australia’s total employment rose 4 per cent (49,900) through the year to December 2017, with rising full-time employment (up 3 per cent or 28,400) and part‑time employment (up 5 per cent or 21,500)
• Western Australia had 19,800 job vacancies in the December quarter 2017, 500 more than in the previous quarter and 2,100 more than a year ago.
• Western Australia’s unemployment rate of 5.7 per cent in December 2017 was below the 6.6 per cent in the previous month and 6.5 per cent a year ago.
• Western Australia’s underemployment rate of 9.2 per cent in the December quarter 2017 was below the 9.6 per cent in the previous quarter, but above the 9.0 per cent a year ago.

Other

• Western Australia had $6.6 billion of building activity in the pipeline in the September quarter 2017, below the $6.8 billion in the previous quarter.
• Western Australia’s building approvals fell in the September quarter 2017 for residential building (down 4 per cent to $1.5 billion) and non-residential building (down 14 per cent to $1.0 billion).

 

The latest WA Economic Profile will be available on the Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation’s website soon.