New Zealand jobs grow strongly

Job numbers rose a strong 3.1 percent in the year to the June 2016 quarter (as measured by the QES), driven in part by accommodation and food services, construction, and health services. This compares with a 2.2 percent increase in filled jobs in the year to the March 2016 quarter.

"There were 14,000 more jobs in accommodation and food services, up a strong 11 percent in the June year," business prices manager Sarah Williams said.

While job numbers have grown, annual wage growth remained subdued in a period of low consumer price inflation.

Annual wage inflation (as measured by the LCI) increased 1.5 percent in the June 2016 year, in line with levels for the past three years. Over the latest June year, the consumer price index, which measures the prices of goods and services that households buy, rose 0.4 percent.

"The gap between the labour cost index and inflation was 1.1 percentage points, the smallest gap since the end of 2014," Williams said.

The 1.5 percent increase in the LCI in the June 2016 year compares with a 1.6 percent increase in the year to the March 2016 quarter. Private sector wage inflation was 1.6 percent for the latest June year; for the public sector it was 1.3 percent.