Australia's Job Market Weakening?
June 6th, 2006 | Published in Jobs
The total number of job ads in Australia fell by 1.5 percent in May to average 177,313 per week. The trend rate of growth of job ads continued to slow, to a monthly increase of only 0.7 percent, according to the ANZ Bank.
The number of Internet job ads fell while newspaper job ads increased in number
Newspaper job ads rose by almost 8 percent in May to 20,832 per week.
Internet job ads fell by 2.6 % in May to average 156,481 per week.
Tony Pearson, ANZ Head of Australian Economics, commented; “The seasonally adjusted series for job advertisements has been volatile in recent months, with the trend data providing a more reliable guide to the underlying demand for labour.
“While there have been some tentative signs of improvement in newspaper job advertisements, the trend data for the total job advertisement series have continued to ease into 2006, pointing to a sustained winding back in employers’ hiring intentions.
“The demand for workers appears to be weakening most rapidly in NSW, Queensland and Victoria. Conditions remain the most buoyant in Western Australia and the Northern Territory – the states that continue to benefit most from the mining boom – and also in the ACT. Demand for workers in South Australia continues to ease, while in Tasmania it appears to be stabilising,” Mr Pearson said.
