What are the industry markers telling us?

Hope you’ve had a great week!

Obviously you can’t turn anywhere these days without hearing talk about how we will or won't be affected by the economic slow down prompted by the Coronavirus.

So with this in mind, it was interesting to see that businesses are starting to advertise for staff again.

Just over 600,000 jobs were lost in the economy through April - and job ads - a key leading indicator of employment, fell 50 per cent through the month.

However, the employment portal SEEK showed that through the fortnight to May 17, ads were 26.8 per cent up on the April average!

There were large increases in sectors worst hit by coronavirus-related closures, with ads for hospitality and tourism doubling, while there was a 97.1 per cent increase for general sales.

South Australia has shown the biggest rebound, with ads in that state up by 36.2 per cent. Ads in NSW, which suffered a 52.4 per cent drop in April, were up by 21.2 per cent, while in Victoria, which endured a 56.3 per cent fall last month, they were up by almost 29 per cent.

SEEK says this is ‘where the jobs are’

• Healthcare and medical – roles in nursing (aged care and general medical), physiotherapy, psychology, counselling and social work, and general practitioners

• Trades and services – labourers, fitters, turners, machinists and electricians, and automotive workers

• Information and communication technology – developers and programmers, business and systems analysts, software engineers, and roles in project management

• Manufacturing, transport and logistics – roles in warehousing, storage and distribution, road transport, assembly and process work, and machine operators

• Mining, resources and energy – operations, and engineering and maintenance.

Also, Commonwealth Bank figures released on Tuesday show spending on credit and debit cards in the week to May 15 was down just 2 per cent year on year.

Although that’s well below pre-crisis levels, with spending in January up 7 per cent on the year before, it’s a noticeable improvement on the lows of mid-April.

Commonwealth Bank senior economist Kristina Clifton said consumers were opening their wallets as restrictions eased and government stimulus flowed into bank accounts.

And in closing, REA group (realestate.com.au) economist Nerida Consibee has reported that agents are upping price guides and reversing gloomy forecasts amid extraordinary demand for quality listings in Sydney’s east predicting that price drops may be avoided in premium suburbs.

“It’s premium Sydney that’s doing the best,” Conisbee said.

“There’s been a flight to quality if you’ve got a job you can get access to very cheap loans at the moment.

“People who can afford to buy in the east are less affected by job losses at the moment.”

Provided the coronavirus situation doesn’t suddenly deteriorate, she’s cautiously optimistic.

“I think the better suburbs in every capital will probably stay steady — not return to really strong growth any time soon, but we could avoid price drops in those better parts of Sydney,” Conisbee said.

Have a great weekend, stay safe, and if you have any queries in regards to the effect of the Coronavirus on our property markets, please contact enquiries@propertyclub.com.au. 

---

Property Club is at the forefront of the best properties in the best areas - make contact with your Property Mentor or hit enquiries@propertyclub.com.au for further information on the great options available for Club members!

Troy Gunasekera

National Manager