Job advertisements on the internet and in newspapers have fallen again, but the rate of decline is slowing.
The total number of job ads fell by 0.3 per cent in January, seasonally adjusted, following a 0.8 per cent fall the month before, the latest ANZ job advertisements survey found.
The number of jobs advertised in January was 8.9 per cent lower than the previous January, following a 16.7 per cent fall in the preceding 12 months.
ANZ Chief Economist (Australia) Ivan Colhoun said there had been a "notable stabilisation in the rate of deterioration" in demand for labour over the past half-year.
"While none of the measures of job advertising/vacancies have shown a convincing upward trend at this stage, they are clearly not falling at the sharp pace seen earlier," he said.
"This suggests that overall conditions in the labour market are also likely to stabilise in coming months."
Mr Colhoun said the unemployment rate, last measured at 5.8 per cent in December, will most likely peak in the five to six per cent range but remain there "for some time".
The recent trend in job ads, along with other indicators like retail sales and building approvals, suggest the outlook for the economy was becoming more positive, helped by low interest rates and the lower Australian dollar, he said.
But the effect of the declining terms of trade - export prices falling relative to import prices - was a "key uncertainty".
"Given this, we expect the RBA to continue to provide the economy with accommodative monetary policy for an extended period with the official cash rate expected to be unchanged this year," Mr Colhoun said.
