The Australia and New Zealand Bank (ASX: ANZ) latest survey shows a rise in job vacancies posted in major metropolitan newspapers and on the worldwide web.

The bank survey reveals a 2.6 percent increase in job advertisements for the month of August. The rise is a pull away from last month's 1.4 percent increase. Newspaper job ads showed a 1.5 percent increase and internet job ads show a 2.6 percent rise.

August's figure translates to an average of 176,239 job vacancies posted in a week. ANZ chief economist Warren Hogan in a press statement attributed the rise in job advertisements “suggests Australian businesses are confident about the local outlook despite the uncertain global economic environment.”

The chief economist emphasized that the figure also “suggests the Australian economy is maintaining good momentum into the second half of 2010.” The July and August increases follow the rising trend of 6.9 percent during the second quarter.

Moreover, the recent August result is equal to a 36.1 percent seasonally adjusted increase from the August 2009 data.

Hogan pointed at the differences in the job advertisements in Australian states and territories. The rise in job advertisements in the Northern Territory, New South Wales, Queensland, and Tasmania “helped to offset falls in job advertisements in the ACT, South Australia, Western Australia, and Victoria.”