SEEK Reports 20% Drop In Job Advertisements, Forecasts More Decline

Australian recruitment website SEEK has reported a 20% drop in job advertisements, which has resulted in a 13% decline in its annual earnings -- a reduction that intensified competition among jobseekers, as there were fewer roles available.

The recruitment company's stock price fell 8.5%, causing a loss of AU$600 million, as SEEK's CEO, Ian Narev, predicts fewer job ads in Australia and New Zealand next year, The Guardian reported.

The decline in job ads, the company's major source of income from its site, led to a 13% drop in earnings to AU$483 million.

"For FY2025, economists are forecasting weaker macroeconomic conditions in most of our markets," he said, as per Herald Sun. "Based on our historical experience of similar conditions, we have assumed that paid ad volumes in ANZ (Australia and New Zealand) will continue to decline throughout financial year 2025."

"SEEK's headline financial outcomes for the year were impacted by a significant reduction in job ad volumes across APAC relative to previous record highs and the impairment of our investment in Zhaopin," Narev said.

SEEK had reported an AU$141 million impairment charge on its investment in Chinese recruitment services company Zhaopin in July.

"In terms of employment markets, blue-collar employment has performed considerably better than the white-collar market in which Zhaopin primarily operates," the company had then said.

Australia's labor market is under close watch since the 4.1% unemployment rate may approach recession if it were to rise significantly. A growing unemployment rate could also lead to a change in the Reserve Bank's monetary policy and interest rate.

Big bank Westpac predicts that by mid-year the unemployment rate will rise to 4.5%.

The Bureau of Statistics will release new jobs data on Thursday.