The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) experienced an immediate fall after new unemployment data was published today.
The ASX 200 was trading at an intraday peak of 8,864.5 points when the Australian Bureau of Statistics released the data at 11:30am.
The ASX 200 dropped by 0.3% to an intraday low of 8,782.9 points after the data revealed that the jobless rate fell to 4.1% in December.
This has enhanced fears of an interest rate hike in the new year to quell resurgent inflation.
At the time of writing, the ASX 200 has recovered to be up 0.5% for the day at 8,829.6 points.
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Unemployment falls to 4.1%
The ABS reported a 0.2% fall in the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate from 4.3% in November to 4.1% in December.
The concern here is that lower unemployment may contribute to resurgent inflation seen in the last few months of 2025.
Lower unemployment indicates a healthy economy in which people have capacity to spend.
This could see demand for goods and services rise, which may push up inflation.
The ABS said the number of people employed rose by 65,000 in December, comprising 55,000 full-time jobs and 10,000 part-time jobs.
Sean Crick, ABS head of labour statistics, said:
This month we saw more 15-24 year olds moving into employment, contributing to the rise in overall employment and the fall in the unemployment rate.
The growth in employed people led to the participation rate rising slightly to 66.7 per cent.
This was despite a 30,000 person drop in unemployment.
The number of hours worked rose 0.4% to reach a record high of more than two billion hours for the first time.
ASX 200 bank stocks rise while gold miners flounder
ASX 200 bank shares are higher on Thursday, with Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) up 1.7% to $149.76.
The Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price is up 1.4% to $38.66.
National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB) shares are 2.7% higher at $42.31.
ANZ Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: ANZ) shares are up 0.8% to $36.45.
The Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) share price is up 2.5% to $210.89.
Meanwhile, the ASX 200 materials sector is the worst performer of the day.
The S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) is down 1.7% as gold shares cop a beating.
Gold shares and gold ETFs are lower because higher interest rates make non-yielding safe-haven assets like precious metals less attractive.
Gold stocks are also suffering a contagion effect today after the market's largest player, Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST), disappointed investors with its December quarter report.
The Northern Star Resources share price is sharply down 8.9% at $26.06.
The Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) share price is 5.9% lower at $13.92.
Newmont Corporation CDI (ASX: NEM) shares are 4.7% lower at $172.24.
The Genesis Minerals Ltd (ASX: GMD) share price is $7.51, down 4.3% today.
The Betashares Global Gold Miners Currency Hedged ETF (ASX: MNRS) is down 4.5% to $17.99 per unit.
The VanEck Gold Miners AUD ETF (ASX: GDX) is down 6% to $150.38 per unit.
By contrast, ASX 200 retail shares are sharply higher, with the S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index (ASX: XDJ) up 2.2%.
Shares in Smiggle owner Premier Investments Ltd (ASX: PMV) are among the highest risers of the sector today, up 9.4% to $13.96.
Footwear retailer Accent Group Ltd (ASX: AX1) is up 4.4% to 96 cents per share.
Yesterday, the market was already pricing in a 25% chance of an interest rate hike when the Reserve Bank Board meets on 2-3 February.
