Job Advertisements strong in December

Economics@ANZ Level 10, 100 Queen Street Melbourne Vic 3000 Telephone 03 9273 6224 Facsimile 03 9273 5711 www.anz.com/go/economics For release: 11:30am Monday, 8 January 2007 Job Advertisements strong in December The total number of jobs advertised in major metropolitan newspapers and on the internet jumped by 12.1% in December to a weekly average of 210,401 per week. This more than reverses the 3.8% fall in total advertisements recorded in November. The total number of advertisements in December was 28.1% higher than 12 months ago. Looking at the different channels for advertising jobs, the number of job advertisements in major metropolitan newspapers increased by 4.4% in December to an average of 20,594 per week. This follows a 2.1% decline in November. Newspaper advertisements are now 0.2% higher than in December 2005. The rise in newspaper job advertisements in December was driven by increases in New South Wales (9.6%); South Australia (6.0%); Victoria (5.9%); Queensland (4.3%); and Western Australia (2.1%). These increases were partially offset by significant falls in both the ACT (-16.4%) and the Northern Territory (-11.0%), with a small decline also recorded in Tasmania (-2.1%). Abstracting from month-to-month volatility in the data, trend data show that the decline in newspaper job advertisements in major metropolitan newspapers has turned a corner. The number of job advertisements has risen over the past three consecutive months by 1% in total. Nonetheless, newspaper job advertisements in December 2006 remain 9.9% lower than at the most recent peak in November 2004. The number of internet job advertisements grew strongly by 12.9% in December to average 189,807 per week. In trend terms, internet job advertisements are still growing solidly, although the annual rate of growth has been slowing since January 2005. This may be a sign that this channel for advertising jobs is maturing after several years of exceptionally strong growth. The two main media channels for advertising jobs newspapers and the internet continue to display contrasting trends. While job advertisements in newspapers gently declined over 2005 and 2006, internet job advertisements have been growing strongly, albeit at a slowing pace. The slowing in the annual trend rate of growth in job advertising on the internet may point to a maturing of this advertising medium. To best reflect these compositional changes in job advertising, ANZ continues to believe that the composite newspaper plus internet job advertisements series provides the best overall guide to trends in the demand for labour, Saul Eslake, ANZ s Chief Economist said. Despite the bounce in the composite job advertisements series in December, we expect to see a continued slowing of the trend in employment growth in coming months. Changes in the trend composite series have led changes in employment closely over 2006. In 2007, although employment growth will remain solid, we expect it to slow gently as a consequence of the cooling in domestic demand through 2006. Recent interest rate rises may also continue to have an impact, although the labour market will nonetheless continue to remain tight. Mr Eslake said. Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited ABN 11 005 357 522

2 (Note: For some of the newspapers surveyed, the ANZ counts the number of advertisement bookings. Each booking may contain multiple advertisements. In addition, the ANZ series counts classified advertisements only, and does not include display advertisements. For these reasons, it would be incorrect to draw any inference or correlation from the ANZ series regarding advertising volumes or revenues from employment advertising in the newspapers surveyed. The ANZ series is not intended to, and should not, be used to assess the financial performance of any of the newspapers included in it.) Further comment: Data enquiries: Distribution enquiries, changes to fax listings: Saul Eslake Amber Rabinov Katherine Rellos Chief Economist Economist Media Relations Manager Phone: (03) 9273 6251 Phone: (03) 9273 4853 Phone: (03) 9273 5257 Next release: January 2007 Expected release date: Monday, 5 February 2007

3 Monthly trend growth in total job advertisements and employment 5 trend change ('000) trend change ('000) 40 4 3 Total job ads, 3 months forward (left scale) Employment (right scale) 35 30 25 20 2 15 1 10 5 0 0-5 -1 2003 2004 2005 2006 Sources: ABS, The Labour Force (6202.0); Economics@ANZ. -10

4 Newspaper and internet job advertisements 200 180 Weekly average ('000) (seas. adj.) Newspaper Internet* 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 * Revisions were made to historical data in the April release to reflect changes in sources. Source: Economics@ANZ. Annual changes in newspaper and internet job advertisements 60 40 % change from year earlier (seasonally adjusted) Internet* 20 Total* 0-20 Newspapers -40 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 *Revisions were made to historical data in the April release to reflect changes in sources. Note: Seasonal adjustment now done by ABS. Source: Economics@ANZ.

5 State and Territory newspaper data New South Wales Victoria 14.0 9.0 12.0 10.0 7.0 8.0 6.0 5.0 4.0 3.0 Queensland Western Australia 4.0 3.5 3.0 2.5 2.0 1.5 4.5 4.0 3.5 3.0 2.5 2.0 1.5 South Australia Tasmania 2.0 0.6 1.5 0.5 0.4 1.0 0.3 0.5 0.2 Australian Capital Territory Northern Territory 1.0 0.4 0.8 0.3 0.6 0.4 0.2 0.2 0.1 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 Trend Source: Economics@ANZ.

6 Average number of newspaper job advertisements per week Australia Original Trend estimate (a) P.c. change over - P.c. change over - Number Number Month Year Number Month Year 2002-03 21,013 3.3 2003-04 21,540 2.5 2004-05 21,866 1.5 2005-06 20,450-6.5 Nov 2004 23,682 22,266-0.3 4.0 22,348 0.0 4.7 Dec 2004 13,720 22,746 2.2 6.8 22,302-0.2 4.3 Jan 2005 19,485 22,070-3.0 4.8 22,201-0.5 3.5 Feb 2005 24,997 21,990-0.4 0.6 22,024-0.8 2.1 Mar 2005 21,117 21,376-2.8-2.3 21,776-1.1 0.4 Apr 2005 21,180 22,156 3.7 1.8 21,483-1.3-1.6 May 2005 21,242 21,105-4.7-3.3 21,198-1.3-3.4 Jun 2005 20,066 20,724-1.8-6.1 20,962-1.1-4.9 Jul 2005 20,968 20,629-0.5-6.3 20,803-0.8-5.9 Aug 2005 22,304 20,719 0.4-7.9 20,722-0.4-6.6 Sep 2005 23,345 20,733 0.1-5.7 20,697-0.1-7.2 Oct 2005 23,600 20,730 0.0-7.1 20,700 0.0-7.4 Nov 2005 22,229 20,861 0.6-6.3 20,650-0.2-7.6 Dec 2005 11,468 20,551-1.5-9.7 20,514-0.7-8.0 Jan 2006 19,506 20,373-0.9-7.7 20,351-0.8-8.3 Feb 2006 22,726 19,972-2.0-9.2 20,219-0.6-8.2 Mar 2006 21,401 20,363 2.0-4.7 20,142-0.4-7.5 Apr 2006 17,405 19,350-5.0-12.7 20,106-0.2-6.4 May 2006 20,941 20,832 7.7-1.3 20,094-0.1-5.2 Jun 2006 19,501 20,167-3.2-2.7 20,063-0.2-4.3 Jul 2006 20,232 19,925-1.2-3.4 20,008-0.3-3.8 Aug 2006 21,286 19,812-0.6-4.4 19,956-0.3-3.7 Sep 2006 22,291 19,770-0.2-4.6 19,940-0.1-3.7 Oct 2006 22,839 20,134 1.8-2.9 19,967 0.1-3.5 Nov 2006 21,050 19,719-2.1-5.5 20,020 0.3-3.1 Dec 2006 11,532 20,594 4.4 0.2 20,143 0.6-1.8 (a) The trend estimates have been derived by applying a 13-term Henderson moving average to the seasonally adjusted series. While this smoothing technique enables estimates to be produced for the latest month, it does result in revisions to the most recent six months as additional observations become available.

7 Average number of newspaper job advertisements per week - States and Territories Original Trend estimate (a) P.c. change over - P.c. change over - Number Number Month Year Number Month Year New South Wales - Jul 2006 5,612 5,538-4.2-9.5 5,496-1.8-11.4 Aug 2006 5,690 5,207-6.0-13.6 5,422-1.4-13.1 Sep 2006 6,039 5,154-1.0-20.5 5,399-0.4-14.1 Oct 2006 6,140 5,586 8.4-11.5 5,420 0.4-14.1 Nov 2006 5,676 5,354-4.1-17.5 5,469 0.9-12.9 Dec 2006 3,081 5,871 9.6-6.8 5,552 1.5-10.1 Victoria - Jul 2006 4,273 4,199-2.9-10.2 4,238 0.0-9.7 Aug 2006 4,552 4,180-0.4-9.5 4,216-0.5-8.8 Sep 2006 4,671 4,192 0.3-7.3 4,182-0.8-8.3 Oct 2006 4,924 4,203 0.3-6.7 4,152-0.7-7.9 Nov 2006 4,219 3,989-5.1-12.3 4,130-0.5-7.2 Dec 2006 2,394 4,225 5.9-3.4 4,124-0.2-5.5 Queensland - Jul 2006 2,959 2,803 1.1-4.8 2,836 0.1-5.7 Aug 2006 3,178 2,875 2.6-4.0 2,856 0.7-4.6 Sep 2006 3,395 2,921 1.6-2.8 2,885 1.0-4.0 Oct 2006 3,377 2,883-1.3-5.7 2,916 1.1-4.0 Nov 2006 3,068 2,921 1.3-3.4 2,946 1.0-3.9 Dec 2006 1,638 3,045 4.3-2.7 2,984 1.3-2.9 South Australia - Jul 2006 1,611 1,558-0.7-5.5 1,617 0.9-2.8 Aug 2006 1,740 1,721 10.5-2.6 1,636 1.1-1.1 Sep 2006 1,822 1,683-2.2 3.9 1,651 0.9 0.4 Oct 2006 1,839 1,653-1.8 3.7 1,660 0.6 1.3 Nov 2006 1,756 1,600-3.2 0.0 1,666 0.3 1.6 Dec 2006 1,020 1,696 6.0 4.4 1,670 0.3 1.6 The above data are based on information provided by the following newspapers: The Sydney Morning Herald and The Daily Telegraph (NSW); The Age and The Herald-Sun (Victoria); The Courier-Mail (Queensland); and The Advertiser (South Australia).

8 Average number of newspaper job advertisements per week - States and Territories Original Trend estimate (a) P.c. change over - P.c. change over - Number Number Month Year Number Month Year Western Australia - Jul 2006 4,179 4,204 1.1 13.1 4,201 0.2 12.9 Aug 2006 4,407 4,190-0.3 10.1 4,198-0.1 13.2 Sep 2006 4,607 4,167-0.6 15.8 4,201 0.1 13.5 Oct 2006 4,809 4,186 0.5 10.1 4,214 0.3 13.6 Nov 2006 4,640 4,236 1.2 14.6 4,231 0.4 13.5 Dec 2006 2,566 4,323 2.1 17.9 4,260 0.7 13.2 Tasmania - Jul 2006 435 456 1.5-7.0 464 0.3-6.7 Aug 2006 495 487 6.8 1.7 463-0.2-4.0 Sep 2006 486 462-5.1-1.0 458-0.9-2.0 Oct 2006 485 451-2.4-3.6 451-1.6-1.3 Nov 2006 468 433-4.1-4.4 442-2.0-1.9 Dec 2006 287 423-2.1-2.1 435-1.7-2.7 ACT - Jul 2006 807 809 5.0 13.4 811 2.0 14.5 Aug 2006 867 828 2.3 16.4 821 1.2 14.4 Sep 2006 883 835 0.8 15.2 822 0.1 13.0 Oct 2006 892 832-0.3 9.5 815-0.8 11.1 Nov 2006 860 840 1.0 14.3 802-1.5 8.9 Dec 2006 373 703-16.4 0.2 788-1.8 6.7 Northern Territory - Jul 2006 357 357 5.1 12.6 344 1.1 11.0 Aug 2006 359 323-9.7 3.3 345 0.1 14.0 Sep 2006 389 355 9.9 11.8 342-0.8 14.4 Oct 2006 374 340-4.3 44.0 338-1.1 12.7 Nov 2006 363 346 2.0 7.7 334-1.3 9.7 Dec 2006 173 308-11.0-5.6 329-1.4 6.0 The above data are based on information provided by the following newspapers: The West Australian (Western Australia); The Mercury, The Examiner and The Advocate (Tasmania); The Canberra Times (Australian Capital Territory); and The NT News (Northern Territory).

9 Average number of internet job advertisements per week Australia* Original P.c. change over - Trend estimate (a) P.c. change over - Number Number Month Year Number Month Year 2002-03 63,402 7.6 2003-04 81,453 28.5 2004-05 115,338 41.6 2005-06 166,533 44.4 Nov 2004 119,456 113,318 4.7 47.2 112,316 3.3 46.2 Dec 2004 104,820 117,163 3.4 47.5 115,812 3.1 46.4 Jan 2005 92,691 117,065-0.1 43.1 118,980 2.7 45.6 Feb 2005 120,745 122,783 4.9 47.6 121,650 2.2 43.9 Mar 2005 124,156 123,641 0.7 40.2 123,859 1.8 41.6 Apr 2005 122,663 125,556 1.5 39.4 125,664 1.5 38.9 May 2005 128,661 128,575 2.4 37.0 127,142 1.2 36.1 Jun 2005 128,864 127,655-0.7 30.5 128,393 1.0 33.5 Jul 2005 131,973 129,121 1.1 31.9 129,515 0.9 30.8 Aug 2005 140,903 131,866 2.1 30.0 130,930 1.1 28.4 Sep 2005 145,816 132,529 0.5 26.8 133,122 1.7 26.5 Oct 2005 147,488 135,105 1.9 24.8 136,303 2.4 25.4 Nov 2005 147,183 139,462 3.2 23.1 140,574 3.1 25.2 Dec 2005 128,879 143,704 3.0 22.7 145,427 3.5 25.6 Jan 2006 121,228 153,240 6.6 30.9 150,094 3.2 26.2 Feb 2006 152,298 154,802 1.0 26.1 154,119 2.7 26.7 Mar 2006 159,233 158,378 2.3 28.1 157,260 2.0 27.0 Apr 2006 156,988 160,695 1.5 28.0 159,335 1.3 26.8 May 2006 156,643 156,481-2.6 21.7 160,843 0.9 26.5 Jun 2006 164,374 162,878 4.1 27.6 161,970 0.7 26.2 Jul 2006 169,980 166,494 2.2 28.9 163,382 0.9 26.1 Aug 2006 175,367 164,245-1.4 24.6 165,544 1.3 26.4 Sep 2006 181,244 164,793 0.3 24.3 168,568 1.8 26.6 Oct 2006 191,178 175,126 6.3 29.6 171,991 2.0 26.2 Nov 2006 177,454 168,050-4.0 20.5 175,738 2.2 25.0 Dec 2006 170,434 189,807 12.9 32.1 179,066 1.9 23.1 The internet series counts the average number of advertisements carried by each of the sites contributing to the series on the same day of each week in the month indicated. The day (which is not necessarily the same for each site) is selected by the site operator as broadly representative of its activity levels. The above data are based on information provided by the operators of the following sites: Seek.com.au; Hudson Global Resources; and the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) Australian Job Search site, jobsearch.gov.au. * Revisions were made to historical data in the April release to reflect changes in sources.

10 Average total number of newspaper and internet job advertisements per week Australia* Original P.c. change over - Trend estimate (a) P.c. change over - Number Number Month Year Number Month Year 2002-03 84,415 6.5 2003-04 102,993 22.0 2004-05 137,204 33.2 2005-06 166,533 21.4 Nov 2004 143,138 135,584 3.9 37.8 134,663 2.7 37.2 Dec 2004 118,540 139,909 3.2 38.9 138,114 2.6 37.5 Jan 2005 112,176 139,136-0.6 35.3 141,181 2.2 36.9 Feb 2005 145,742 144,773 4.1 37.8 143,674 1.8 35.4 Mar 2005 145,273 145,017 0.2 31.7 145,636 1.4 33.4 Apr 2005 143,843 147,713 1.9 32.1 147,147 1.0 31.0 May 2005 149,902 149,681 1.3 29.4 148,340 0.8 28.6 Jun 2005 148,930 148,379-0.9 23.7 149,355 0.7 26.3 Jul 2005 152,942 149,750 0.9 24.9 150,318 0.6 24.1 Aug 2005 163,207 152,586 1.9 23.2 151,652 0.9 22.2 Sep 2005 169,161 153,263 0.4 21.2 153,819 1.4 20.7 Oct 2005 171,088 155,836 1.7 19.4 157,002 2.1 19.8 Nov 2005 169,412 160,323 2.9 18.2 161,225 2.7 19.7 Dec 2005 140,347 164,255 2.5 17.4 165,940 2.9 20.1 Jan 2006 140,734 173,613 5.7 24.8 170,445 2.7 20.7 Feb 2006 175,024 174,773 0.7 20.7 174,338 2.3 21.3 Mar 2006 180,633 178,740 2.3 23.3 177,401 1.8 21.8 Apr 2006 174,393 180,046 0.7 21.9 179,440 1.1 21.9 May 2006 177,584 177,313-1.5 18.5 180,938 0.8 22.0 Jun 2006 183,875 183,044 3.2 23.4 182,033 0.6 21.9 Jul 2006 190,212 186,419 1.8 24.5 183,390 0.7 22.0 Aug 2006 196,653 184,057-1.3 20.6 185,500 1.2 22.3 Sep 2006 203,535 184,563 0.3 20.4 188,508 1.6 22.6 Oct 2006 214,017 195,260 5.8 25.3 191,957 1.8 22.3 Nov 2006 198,504 187,769-3.8 17.1 195,758 2.0 21.4 Dec 2006 181,965 210,401 12.1 28.1 199,209 1.8 20.0 * Revisions were made to historical data in the April release to reflect changes in sources.

11 Disclaimer Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited is represented in: AUSTRALIA by: Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited ABN 11 005 357 522 10th Floor 100 Queen Street, Melbourne 3000, Australia Telephone +61 3 9273 6224 Fax +61 3 9273 5711 UNITED KINGDOM by: Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited ABN 11 005 357 522 Minerva House, PO Box 7 Montague Close, London, SE1 9DH, United Kingdom Telephone+ 44 171 378 2121 Fax+44 171 378 2378 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA by: ANZ Securities, Inc. (Member of NASD and SIPC) 6th Floor 1177 Avenue of the Americas New York, NY 10036, United States of America Tel: +1 212-801-9160 Fax: +1 212-801-9163 NEW ZEALAND by: ANZ National Bank Limited Level 7, 1-9 Victoria Street, Wellington, New Zealand Telephone +64 4 802 2000 In Australia and the UK, ANZ Investment Bank is a business name of Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited, ABN 11 005 357 522 ( ANZ Bank ), which holds an Australian Financial Services licence no. 234527 and is authorised in the UK by the Financial Services Authority ( FSA ). In New Zealand, ANZ Investment Bank is a business name of ANZ National Bank Limited WN / 035976 ( ANZ NZ ). This document is being distributed in the United States by ANZ Securities, Inc. ( ANZ S ) (an affiliated company of ANZ Bank), which accepts responsibility for its content. Further information on any securities referred to herein may be obtained from ANZ S upon request. Any US person(s) receiving this document and wishing to effect transactions in any securities referred to herein should contact ANZ S, not its affiliates. This document is being distributed in the United Kingdom by ANZ Bank for the information of its market counterparties and intermediate customers only. It is not intended for and must not be distributed to private customers. In the UK, ANZ Bank is regulated by the FSA. Nothing here excludes or restricts any duty or liability to a customer which ANZ Bank may have under the UK Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 or under the regulatory system as defined in the Rules of the FSA. This document is issued on the basis that it is only for the information of the particular person to whom it is provided. This document may not be reproduced, distributed or published by any recipient for any purpose. This document does not take into account your personal needs and financial circumstances. Under no circumstances is this document to be used or considered as an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy. In addition, from time to time ANZ Bank, ANZ NZ, ANZ S, their affiliated companies, or their respective associates and employees may have an interest in any financial products (as defined by the Australian Corporations Act 2001), securities or other investments, directly or indirectly the subject of this document (and may receive commissions or other remuneration in relation to the sale of such financial products, securities or other investments), or may perform services for, or solicit business from, any company the subject of this document. If you have been referred to ANZ Bank, ANZ NZ, ANZ S or their affiliated companies by any person, that person may receive a benefit in respect of any transactions effected on your behalf, details of which will be available upon request. The information herein has been obtained from, and any opinions herein are based upon, sources believed reliable. The views expressed in this document accurately reflect the author s personal views, including those about any and all of the securities and issuers referred to herein. The author however makes no representation as to its accuracy or completeness and the information should not be relied upon as such. All opinions and estimates herein reflect the author s judgement on the date of this document and are subject to change without notice. No part of the author's compensation was, is or will directly or indirectly relate to specific recommendations or views expressed about any securities or issuers in this document. ANZ Bank, ANZ NZ, ANZ S, their affiliated companies, their respective directors, officers, and employees disclaim any responsibility, and shall not be liable, for any loss, damage, claim, liability, proceedings, cost or expense ( Liability ) arising directly or indirectly (and whether in tort (including negligence), contract, equity or otherwise) out of or in connection with the contents of and/or any omissions from this communication except where a Liability is made non-excludable by legislation. Where the recipient of this publication conducts a business, the provisions of the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 (NZ) shall not apply.