Australia ANZ job ads bounce back in June after falling over 8 pct in May

Australia’s ANZ job ads bounced back in June after falling more than 8 percent in May. The ‘Holiday-year effect’ in late April and the timing of the election appear to have been responsible for much of the decline in May, and the rebound in June can be seen as an unwinding of that effect.

In seasonally adjusted terms, job ads gained 4.6 percent m/m but fell by 9.1 percent y/y. In trend terms, job ads fell 1.4 percent m/m and 11.1 percent y/y.

"Job ads in June jumped 4.6 percent, reversing a bit more than half of the sharp drop in May. The gain was one of the biggest in 18 months. We don’t think it necessarily represents a turn in the overall downward trend, however. Job ads plunged more than 8 percent in May as a result of the timing of the election and the late April ‘holiday year’ effect (when Easter and ANZAC Day were close together). The subsequent jump in job ads in June represents only a partial recovery from that weakness, suggesting that the overall trend is still downwards. This points to slowing employment growth and rising unemployment. If confirmed by the actual employment data, then the RBA will likely react by lowering the cash rate yet again," said David Plank, ANZ’s Head of Australian Economics.