New Zealand’s job market has seen a “surprising” downturn in the first quarter of 2019, according to TradeMe, which saw a 6.1 per cent year-on-year decline on the number of job listings over the period.

“That’s the first drop we’ve seen in the past 10 years,” TradeMe head of jobs Jeremy Wade said.

“Our data shows that the private sector job market peaked around the start of 2018 and there has been a significant (5-10 per cent) tail off since then.”

Wade notes the reduced hiring was largely due to decreased business confidence, with employer caution reducing the number of new listings and advertised wages.

“Without higher wages, there’s little incentive for skilled job hunters to jump ship,” Wade said.

The slowed rate of wage growth is likely to continue through the remainder of 2019, Wade said, but stressed that the weakness in job vacancies is largely concentrated in Auckland and Canterbury – down 13.1 and 10.3 per cent respectively.

The start of 2019 had been “brutal” for Auckland, Wade said.

“Auckland’s dip has been spectacular in just how suddenly it’s come about. Auckland employees appear to [be] pessimistic rather than cautious about the future and they’re battening down the hatches,” Wade said.

“It could be an interesting year.”