The unemployment rate decreased to 5.1 percent in the June 2016 quarter (from a revised 5.2 percent in the March quarter), Statistics New Zealand said today. Compared with the March 2016 quarter, 1,000 fewer people were unemployed in New Zealand.

The official estimate of unemployment is based on people who are both actively seeking work and available to work, as measured in the HLFS.

Unemployment was also down from where it was a year ago (5.5 percent in the June 2015 quarter), particularly for women.

"Compared with June 2015, there were 8,000 fewer unemployed women, and their unemployment rate fell from 6.2 percent to 5.4 percent," labour and income statistics manager Mark Gordon said.

In unadjusted terms, unemployment was down from a year ago across many North Island regions, including Auckland, which had an unemployment rate of 4.7 percent in the June 2016 quarter. This is the lowest rate for the Auckland region since the September 2008 quarter (when it was 4.1 percent).