Daily Flows
- There is still an opportunity to pick up the recent Teachers Mutual 3-year MTN issuance, which priced at +130.
- A domestic bank issued NCDs at +60 for 3-6 months to Curve. Market participants who acted quickly were able to secure this special while it was available.
- There is strong demand for Semi FRNs, with high trading volume in the 3-5 year maturity bucket.
Trend Signs of a Softening Labour Market
- The ANZ-Indeed Australian Job Ads fell by 2.1% MoM in May and have dropped 23.9% since their peak in November 2022, though they remain above pre-pandemic levels.
- Recent labour market data shows slight employment growth, but the pace has significantly decreased. Unemployment and underemployment rates are rising over the past couple months.
- The Job Ads data, typically a forward-looking indicator, suggests that we should continue to expect a softening labour market.
- Looking ahead, the softening of the labour market and unit labour costs are crucial for the RBA to consider future rate cuts.
- Markets are not expecting anything dramatic from the RBA today, with no reason to deviate from current monetary policy levels.