(Adds market reaction, background) SYDNEY, Oct 16 (Reuters) – Australia's unemployment rate spiked unexpectedly to a near four-year high in September as more people went looking for work, a weak result that adds to the case for more policy easing. Investors ramped up bets for a rate cut from the Reserve Bank of Australia in November to 71%, from just 40% before the data. Hopes for more easing had faded as policymakers fret about sticky inflation and a revival in consumer spending. The Australian dollar fell 0.4% to $0.6488, while three-year bond futures rallied 10 ticks to 96.62. The heightened expectations of a rate cut pushed the local stock benchmark to a record high. Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics out on Thursday showed net employment rose 14,900 in September from Aug

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