Login
ISCOVER
Staff Reporter
A drop in job advertisements this month could encourage the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) to cut the official cash rate when the board meets later today.
To continue reading the rest of this article, please log in.
Looking for more benefits? Become a Premium Member.
Create free account to get unlimited news articles and more!
Looking for more benefits? Become a Premium Member.
According to the latest ANZ Job Advertisement Data, adverts fell by 1.3 per cent in April after falling by a revised 0.5 per cent in March.
ANZ chief economist Ivan Colhoun said employment figures have been “exceedingly volatile” in recent months and therefore “largely uninterpretable on a monthly basis”.
“For that reason, trends in the unemployment rate should be focused on,” Mr Colhoun said.
“ANZ expects the unemployment rate to remain unchanged at 5.6 per cent in April, confirming the moderate trend increase revealed in the March data.
“The trend for job advertising is consistent with a further rise in unemployment, a trend which is expected to see the RBA enact further reductions in interest rates over the next six months.
“Market speculation has increased about a move at the May board meeting and while ANZ sees such a move as justified to further support the Australian economy, we continue to expect a move at the June board meeting.
“The outlook for the Australian economy and labour market continues to suggest greater risk of still lower interest rates than rates rising anytime soon.”
