SYDNEY, March 2 (Reuters) – Australian job advertisements rose for a second straight month in February to the highest level in 16 months, private-sector data showed on Monday, adding to signs that the labour market remained healthy at the start of the new year.
The Reserve Bank of Australia raised interest rates by a quarter point to 3.85% last month as inflation reaccelerated after three rate cuts last year. The jobless rate remained surprisingly low at 4.1% and was one reason that markets are wagering on another hike in May, which is priced at 77%.
KEY DETAILS
• The number of job ads rose 3.2% in February from January, when they gained by an upwardly revised 5.2%, data from Australia and New Zealand Banking Group and employment website Indeed showed.
• It marked the first back-to-back monthly gains since October 2024 and took the series to the highest level since then. For the year, job ads in February were 2.3% higher than in 2025, and remained 16.6% higher than pre-pandemic levels.
• “The New Year has coincided with renewed hiring vigour across the country,” said Callam Pickering, a senior economist at Indeed, noting that job vacancies for nurses rose to their highest level in almost two years and management opportunities also surged.
(Reporting by Stella Qiu; Editing by Jamie Freed)
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