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NZ jobless rate falls to 5-1/2 year low as rising migration
New Zealand's unemployment rate fell to a five-and-a-half year low in the September quarter as employers took on a growing number of migrants and the Canterbury rebuild continued to provide jobs. The New Zealand dollar rose. The unemployment rate fell to 5.4 percent, or 134,000 people, in the three months ended Sept. 30 from 5.6 percent in the June quarter, according to Statistics New Zealand's household labour force survey. That's the lowest rate since March 2009 and was in line with economists' expectations. The participation rate increased 0.1 of a percentage point to 69 percent, even as the working age population ... (full story)