BNZ/SEEK Employment Report: Gains Interrupted

The latest BNZ/SEEK employment report noted that "momentum in job advertising continued to peter out during February. In fact, there was a monthly slippage of 0.3%, in seasonally adjusted terms. Annual comparisons were also on the marginally negative side, with ads down 2.3% on February 2020. Of course, comparisons with year-ago levels will be flattered by the fact COVID-19 depressed activity over the early part of 2020, establishing an artificially low base. However, this effect will only be stark starting with the March data, as February 2020 was only on the cusp of the COVID-19 impacts. The stalling in national job advertising during February entailed relative weakness in Auckland. There, numbers fell a seasonally adjusted 3.1% to be down 12.3% on levels of February 2020. This, in turn, could reflect the fact Auckland has been more affected by COVID-19 restrictions of late than the rest of the country has. This was certainly the case during February 2021."