Australia - Westpac flags a lower unemployment rate, robust rise in hours worked

Westpac commentary on the consumer sentiment data they released earlier:

• Australia - Westpac Consumer Confidence Index for November +0.6% m/m (prior -1.5%)

WPAC:

• by far and away the most stunning development was around labour market expectations.
• The Westpac Melbourne Institute Unemployment Expectations Index fell 11% from 107.1 to 95.3. Recall that the Index measures expectations for unemployment over the next 12 months - a lower reading indicating more consumers expect unemployment to fall than rise, a positive signal for confidence in the jobs market Indeed, this is the lowest level for the Index since the mid-1990s, when resurgent growth was finally starting to see sustained declines in unemployment from the very high levels of the early 1990s recession.

Westpac expects a lower jobless rate, higher hours worked, and higher employment ahead. The Reserve Bank of Australia will be watching this keenly and looking for wage gains to follow (the RBA want wage gains to spur inflaitonary pressures).