Australian Job Advertisements Declined for Third Month in July

By Jacob Greber

Aug. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Australian job-vacancy advertisements fell for a third month in July, adding to signs employers will pare hiring as economic growth slows.

Jobs advertised in newspapers and on the Internet dropped 0.3 percent from June to an average of 261,936 a week, following a 3 percent decline in June, which was the biggest fall since November 2006, according to an Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. report released in Melbourne today.

Central bank Governor Glenn Stevens will probably leave the benchmark interest rate at a 12-year-high 7.25 percent tomorrow amid signs rising unemployment will cool inflation that has surged above the bank's target range. Employment growth probably slowed to 5,000 jobs in July from 29,800 in June, according to the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News.

``The overall trend in job advertisements continues to weaken, indicative of a softening in hiring intentions across Australia,'' said Warren Hogan, head of economics at ANZ Bank in Sydney.

Today's report suggest ``that we will see an easing of employment growth in coming quarters, consistent with the slowing in domestic economic conditions in Australia over the first half of 2008,'' he said.

The jobless rate, which fell to a 34-year low of 3.9 percent in February, probably rose to 4.3 percent last month from 4.2 percent in June, according to the median estimate of 24 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. The government will publish the jobs report at 11:30 a.m. in Sydney on Aug. 7.

Qantas Firing

Qantas Airways Ltd., Australia's largest airline, said last month it will sack 1,500 workers, and meat processing company Don Smallgoods will cut 640 at factories in Perth and Melbourne.

Starbucks Corp., the world's largest chain of coffee shops, said July 29 it will close three-quarters of its 84 Australian stores, part of a plan to cut at least 12,000 jobs globally.

``The job advertisements series provides further evidence that the current level of interest rates is achieving the Reserve Bank's desired slowing in domestic economic growth,'' said Hogan. ``We expect the central bank to maintain a steady monetary policy in the short-term, monitoring the extent of the slowing in economic activity versus the risks of on-going inflation pressure.''

All 24 economists surveyed by Bloomberg last week predict Stevens and his board will leave the benchmark rate at 7.25 percent tomorrow. Policy makers last raised borrowing costs in March, the fourth increase since August, 2007. Their decision will be announced at 2:30 p.m. in Sydney tomorrow.

The number of jobs advertised in newspapers fell 5.1 percent in July, today's report showed. Vacancies on the Internet were unchanged.

To contact the reporter for this story: Jacob Greber in Sydney at jgreber@bloomberg.net