Australian Unemployment Hits 4.7% as Reserve Bank Weighs Another Rate Hike

Australia's unemployment rate hit 4.7% in mid-October, its highest in nearly five years. The Reserve Bank, which targets 2.5% inflation, will decide on 3 November whether to lift its 4.60% benchmark interest rate a fifth time this year. Deputy governor Andrew Hauser said the inflation outlook "looks materially worse," and some businesses now see 3.5% as the "new normal."