Mubasher: Australia’s unemployment rate decreased to 5% in September, compared to 5.3% a month earlier, the Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday.

The decline was attributed to a drop in the number of job seekers, the Bureau of Statistics added in a statement.

Participation in the nation’s workforce tumbled to 65.4% during the month before versus 65.7% in August.

The number of part-time employees’ decreased by 14,700, while full-time employees surged by 20,300 last month.

The Australian body further noted that the number of people employed increased by 5,600 persons, down from analysts’ expectations of 15,000.

“Unemployment has now fallen to what the Reserve Bank of Australia estimates is the so-called natural rate of unemployment,” the Bureau’s statement said.