Australian unemployment rate rises to 3.7% as economy sheds 14,600 jobs in July

Latest jobless rate higher than economists predicted, Bureau of Statistics unemployment figures show

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Australia's employers shed jobs last month and the jobless rate rose, underscoring the Reserve Bank's prediction that the labour market was near a turning point.

The unemployment rate in July was 3.7% with the economy losing a net 14,600 jobs, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said. Economists had predicted the jobless rate would tick higher to 3.6% from June's reported 3.5% rate, with a net 15,000 increase in jobs.