Job ads sets new record highs in May – another sign that’s good for the economy

Our economy is showing signs of strength as SEEK's new job ads rose 2.1% month on month in May, further extending its record highs for the 5th consecutive month.

Overall, job ads are 76.1% higher than pre-pandemic levels, indicating labour demand remains elevated even with a record of low unemployment rate.

For this month, job ad growth was seen across all states and territories except for ACT (-1% month on month).

The increase in job ads was led by Victoria, Tasmania and the Northern Territory up a further 3% each.

South Australia, New South Wales and Queensland each posted growth of 2%, closely followed by Western Australia A at 1% month on month.

Source: SEEK

There's a strong job ads growth seen in the industries of hospitality & tourism, retail & consumer, manufacturing, transport and logistics industries.

As labour mobility rises, candidate availability continues to decline further by 2% month on month in April (-26% year on year), which is consistent with widespread reports of labour shortages.

Of course, the cause of the shortage in labour supply continues to be the lower inflow of international students and working holidaymakers, which has particularly affected the retail, hospitality and agriculture sectors.

About Robert Chandra Robert Chandra is a Property Strategist at Metropole and has an intrinsic understanding of property markets backed by many years of real estate experience. This coupled with several degrees gives him a holistic perspective with which he can diagnose clients’ circumstances and goals and formulate strategies to bridge the gap.