NZ job ads slump again in October

By Phil Boeyen, ShareChat Business News Editor

Friday 9th November 2001

The number of advertised jobs is continuing to fall and is now 8% lower than the highs recorded in July.

According to the ANZ Job Ads Series, which counts the number of job advertisements in the major newspapers throughout New Zealand, the total fell 3% in October compared with the previous month and was down 4.4% on the same month last year.

It was the third consecutive month in which the number of job ads has dropped.

ANZ says the result followed September quarter employment data released this week confirming that, although the labour market remains tight, employment growth has softened.

On Thursday Statistics New Zealand's Household Labour Force Survey showed seasonally adjusted employment growth of just 0.3% in the September quarter.

"This was weaker than recorded on average during the previous 12 months, with gains of close to or above 1% in three of the previous four quarters," says ANZ chief economist, David Drage.

"Even so, this employment growth was sufficient to see the unemployment rate remain at a 13 year low of 5.2%."

Mr Drage says that as a forward indicator of the labour market, the ANZ Job Ads Series pointed to employment growth continuing to wane.

"Job advertising levels remain historically high, but recent trends suggest that employment growth will slow further."

The series shows the latest fall was once again driven by weakness in advertising in the main urban centres, with a fall of 4.5% seen overall. In contrast, job advertising in the provinces remains strong.

"The strength of job advertising in the provinces suggests that agricultural sector strength is continuing to underpin economic activity in rural areas, notwithstanding growing fears regarding the impact of a slowing world economy on export returns," says Mr Drage.

"However, the weakness in job advertising in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch over recent months may be a warning that the recovery seen in the local economy over the past six months is faltering."

The bank's Internet job ads series, which measure online job advertising, fell 19.1% in October to be 7.3% lower than in October 2000.

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