Australia job vacancies jump to highest since 2012

[SYDNEY] Job vacancies in Australia jumped 2.7 per cent in the Dec-Feb quarter to hit their highest since mid-2012, a promising sign of improving demand for labour.

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed total job vacancies rose to 172,800 seasonally adjusted in the Dec-Feb quarter, from 168,300 in the three months to Nov.

Vacancies in the three months to Feb were 13.2 higher than in the same period last year.

Vacancies in the private sector climbed 2.9 per cent in the quarter to 157,300, again the highest reading since the Aug quarter of 2012.

Public sector vacancies dipped 0.6 percent in the quarter due to belt-tightening moves by Federal and state government.

Analysts value the vacancies series as it has proved a reliable leading indicator of labour demand and turning point in the employment sector.

REUTERS