Job Ads: nudging up

KEY POINTS

• On a seasonally adjusted basis, ANZ Australian Job Advertisements increased 0.2% in October following a fall of 0.7% in the prior month. On an annual basis, growth slowed to 3.6% in October (vs 4.7% in September). This is the slowest annual growth in ANZ Australian job ads since April 2015.
• In trend terms, job ads fell by 0.2% m/m for the fifth consecutive month. Job ads grew 3.8% y/y to October in trend terms (down from 4.8% y/y in September), also the weakest result since April 2015.  

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ANZ’S HEAD OF AUSTRALIAN ECONOMICS, DAVID PLANK, COMMENTED:

 “After a couple of weak months it is pleasing to see a lift in ANZ Job Ads in October, albeit only a modest gain. ANZ Job Ads have effectively tracked sideways since early this year. The slowdown in employment growth we have seen this year has been broadly consistent with the move in ANZ Job Ads, though in recent months employment growth has outperformed the signal from job ads. The unemployment rate has also fallen more sharply than ANZ Job Ads would imply. Other indicators of the labour market, such as the ABS Job Vacancy series, are sending a more positive signal. Our ANZ Labour Market Indicator, which combines relevant measures of labour demand, suggests that a further decline in the unemployment rate is more likely than not.”

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