RBA's Ellis Warns of Slow Wage Growth Despite Robust Jobs Market
- Assistant Governor says jobs growth not boosting consumption
- RBA sees no reason yet to change full employment estimate
Photographer: Dallas Kilponen/Bloomberg
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Reserve Bank of Australia Assistant Governor Luci Ellis warned that wage growth could take longer to pick up even if the nation’s jobless rate hits the central bank’s estimated full employment level.
Despite a bonanza year in 2017 that saw about 400,000 new roles created, the nation’s jobless rate edged higher in December to 5.5 percent as more people looked for work. The RBA last year estimated the level of Australia’s jobless rate at which wage growth starts to pick up -- or non-accelerating-inflation rate of unemployment -- at 5 percent.