NZ: Job ads point to softening employment growth – ANZ

Liz Kendall, Senior Economist at ANZ, suggests that the NZ’s job ads point to softening employment growth as ANZ Job Ads fell 2.1% m/m in April and annual growth slowed to 3.9% y/y (3mma) versus 6.1% in March.

Key Quotes

“Given the degree of previous strength, moderation is not surprising. That said, business confidence and firms’ hiring intentions have fallen and firms appear to be following through on that.”

“We expect ongoing employment growth, consistent with our forecast of 2-3% y/y GDP growth. But the data suggest it is not all smooth sailing. The economy is grappling with capacity constraints and residual policy uncertainty in the labour relations space. Today’s data is consistent with a degree of employer wariness, as reflected in our business confidence survey.”