ANZ-Indeed Australian Job Ads dropped by 1.0% in July, following a revised 1.6% increase in June. The trend measure for the series was down 0.3% month-on-month. Before the rise in June, job ads had shown modest declines in both April and May.
ANZ Economist Aaron Luk stated, "The ANZ-Indeed Australian Job Ads series edged lower from a revised 116.3 in June to 115.2 in July. The series remains within a tight 114–117 range and has largely been tracking sideways since mid-2024."
Luk also commented on recent labour market data: "The June labour force survey revealed some signs of labour market easing, with the unemployment rate unexpectedly rising to 4.3% in June, while employment saw a subdued increase of 2k. The results may also reflect some statistical noise, with the incoming rotation group in June having a relatively higher unemployment rate than the rest of the survey sample."
He added that despite these developments, there are no strong indications of major changes ahead: "Still, elevated levels in our job ads series suggest a substantial loosening of the labour market is unlikely. And the Q2 NAB Business Survey indicates that around 80% of firms are still reporting labour constraints. As RBA Governor Bullock noted in her recent address to the Anika Foundation, 'leading indicators are not pointing to further significant increases in the unemployment rate in the near term', and we agree with this assessment."
Indeed Senior Economist Callam Pickering provided further detail on sector trends: "In July, the decline in Job Ads was concentrated in education, retail and installation & maintenance. Education has been the largest drag on growth over the past year."
Pickering also highlighted growth areas: "Growth was strongest in software development roles, with the number of jobs rising to their highest level since September 2023."
Regionally, Pickering noted shifts across states: "The decline in July was driven by Victoria, where Job Ads fell to their lowest level since March 2021. Job Ads in New South Wales surged higher in July, but most other states were quite weak, particularly South Australia and Queensland."
Recent reports show that even as job ad volumes decrease slightly overall, many businesses continue to experience difficulties finding staff due to ongoing labour shortages.