SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australian job advertisements fell for a second successive month in May in a sign that the tight labour market may be slowly easing, though the number remained well above pre-pandemic levels.
Data from Australia and New Zealand Banking Group and employment website Indeed showed the number of job ads dropped 1.2% in May from April, when they fell a downwardly revised 0.3%.
Job ads in May were down 5.7% from a year earlier, though they remained 13.6% higher than pre-pandemic levels.
“Although the ANZ-Indeed Australian Job Ads series has remained in a tight range of 114-117 over the last year, the May result is in the bottom of that range and marks the lowest level of job ads since March 2021,” said ANZ economist Aaron Luk.
“The labour market still remains tight, with robust employment growth and a low unemployment.”
The Reserve Bank of Australia cut interest rates to a two-year low last month as cooling inflation offered scope to counter rising global trade risk, and signalled willingness for further easing in the months ahead.
The RBA has welcomed the strength in the labour market, with the jobless rate hovering at 4.1% for over a year now. It expects the unemployment rate to edge up slightly and peak at 4.3% by the end of this year.
(Reporting by Stella Qiu; Editing by Christopher Cushing)
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