Labour market stays solid with job ads increasing for second consecutive month
A second consecutive month of growing job ads numbers suggests the Australian labour market is faring well even as the economy slows.
The 1.7 per cent uptick in job ad volumes in January follows a 0.6 per cent lift in December.
The two consecutive months of increases followed about 12 months of steady declines, the ANZ and Indeed figures showed.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.Rising job ad volumes are typically an indicator of growing demand for labour yet the jobs market is expected to keep cooling off as the economy slows.
ANZ economist Madeline Dunk said there was no doubt the labour market was softening but a significant downturn wasn’t anticipated any time soon.
She said the stabilisation of job ad volumes at still-elevated levels was a sign of resilience in the labour market.
Job ads in the series were still 39.9 per cent higher than pre-pandemic levels, despite falling 15.5 per cent from the November 2022 peak.
Other markers of health in the jobs market, including the official labour force data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, point to easing but still-strong conditions.
In December, the jobless rate held at 3.9 per cent, still low compared to historical norms but above the record lows of 3.4 per cent observed in late 2022.
Businesses are also still reporting labour as a constraint on their output.
A forward-looking indicator of price pressures points to more progress on inflation in the first month of the year.
The 0.3 per cent increase in Melbourne Institute’s monthly inflation gauge was lower than the one per cent lift in December.
On an annual basis, the gauge has consumer prices growing by 4.6 per cent, 0.6 percentages points lower than the most recent annual read.
The January result picked up price rises for secondary and tertiary education, with higher housing-related prices also contributing to the monthly change.
“Price rises were partially offset by price falls for private motoring, primarily attributable to a decline in fuel prices,” the Melbourne Institute’s report said.
The official consumer price index released last week recorded a convincing slowdown in inflation in the December quarter to 4.1 per cent from 5.4 per cent in the September quarter.
