Australia expects unemployment to peak at near 10% after COVID-19 shutdowns

Unemployment in Australia will peak at about 10% as a result of restrictions designed to slow the spread of the coronavirus, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Thursday.

Australia previously saw unemployment hitting a high of 9.25% this year. But after the country's second-most populous state ordered a six-week lockdown around Melbourne, unemployment will peak at about 10%, Morrison said.