At 12.00pm AEST, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 was up 21.3 points, or 0.59 per cent, to 3640.8, while the broader All Ordinaries had added 22.3 points, or 0.63 per cent, to 3589.8.
Australia's unemployment rate was a seasonally adjusted 5.7 per cent in March compared with an unrevised 5.2 per cent in February, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
The number of people employed full time dropped by a seasonally adjusted 34,700 in March.
Burrell Stockbroking associate Peter Wright said the figures were worse than anticipated.
"The actual magnitude of the number has definitely caught people by surprise,'' Mr Wright said. "We've certainly drifted lower since it came out,"
"The consensus seems to be we'll get at least eight per cent unemployment over the coming 12 to 18 months, so I don't think it's caught anyone by any great surprise. But it's not an impressive number all the same.''
Banking stocks were mixed.
ANZ was down 13 cents to $16.17, NAB fell 38 cents to $21.66, Westpac was 41 cents lower at $19.60, but Commonwealth Bank was up 21 cents to $35.08.
Bank of Queensland shares had lost 37 cents, or 4.37 per cent, to $8.32 after it reported first half net profit fell by 25 per cent.
Resources stocks were mainly positive after a good night on commodity markets, Mr Wright said.
BHP Billiton was up 35 cents to $32.13 and Rio Tinto gained 41 cents to $53.22.
Volumes were particularly light ahead of the Easter weekend, Mr Wright said. "These used to be half days, and we don't know why it isn't now. There is not much happening,'' he said.
Toll road operator Transurban Group said on Thursday that aggregate toll revenue from its assets in Australia rose 7.3 per cent to $243.9 million in the March quarter.
Toll shares were down 6 cents, or 1.41 per cent, to $4.20.
Leighton Holdings has announced a raft of management changes including the transfer of its Indonesian operations to the control of Leighton Asia.
Leighton shed 25 cents to $20.82.
On the Sydney Futures Exchange, the June share price index contract was trading up 26 points to 3652 on a volume of 9628 contracts.
Shares fall 1.5pc at noon
Share market gains ground
