The number of job vacancies advertised online fell in June but that's against the overall recent upward trend.

The latest Jobs Online report from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment shows skilled job vacancies fell by a seasonally adjusted 2.1 per cent in June compared to May, and total online job vacancies fell by 4.5 per cent.

Over the past year, however, growth in job vacancies online has been positive with skilled job vacancies 7.5 per cent higher than a year ago and total job vacancies up by 6.7 per cent.

Although the Jobs Online series is seasonably adjusted, it still exhibits some volatility month to month.

"It is the trend over time that is important and the overall increase in job vacancies over the past year suggests a modest improvement in the labour market. This is consistent with the anticipated gradual recovery in employment over the coming year," Vasantha Krishman, the Ministry's general manager of the Labour and Immigration Research Centre, said.

Canterbury showed the strongest regional growth in the past year, up by 20.5 per cent. As to be expected with the rebuild after the Christchurch earthquakes, demand is highest for skilled workers in construction and engineering, up by 46.3 per cent and healthcare and medical, up by 32.2 per cent.

Auckland and Wellington experienced modest growth in skilled vacancies over the June year, rising by 4.9 per cent and 1.7 per cent respectively.

The Jobs Online series monitors the number of jobs advertised on main internet job boards.

- © Fairfax NZ News