Aussie jobless rate tipped to rise

St George senior economist Janu Chan said unemployment figures can be volatile month to month. Photo / AP

Australian unemployment is believed to have bumped higher last month thanks to a slowdown in the creation of new jobs.

Official figures to be released on Thursday are likely to show the jobless rate rose to 6.1 per cent, according to an AAP survey of 11 economists.

The forecast comes after record low interest rates and sluggish wages growth helped push unemployment to its lowest level in a year in May.

It fell to a seasonally adjusted 6 per cent, from a downwardly revised 6.1 per cent in April.

St George senior economist Janu Chan said unemployment figures can be volatile month to month. "[June's] soft employment picture is generally some pullback from strong previous months," she said.

The economy added 42,000 jobs in May, taking the total to 11.76 million.

However, employment is expected to have fallen by 5000 in June, according to the median forecast from the survey.

Economists' forecasts on that measure vary widely, ranging from the creation of 15,000 new jobs in June to a loss of 17,000.

Chan said Thursday's labour force data wouldn't come as a surprise to the Reserve Bank.

- AAP