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Reserve Bank official says the jobs market is cooling a bit faster than expected

Assistant Governor Christopher Kent said next week's inflation figures will help the bank update its view.

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A senior Reserve Bank of Australia official says the jobs market is cooling a little faster than the bank expected. Assistant Governor Christopher Kent spoke at a fireside chat at a Commonwealth Bank conference in Sydney on Monday. "There are indicators where the labour market has become less tight a bit faster than we might have forecast," he said. A less tight jobs market means it is getting a bit harder to find work, and wages may grow more slowly. Mr Kent said the September inflation figures, due on 28 October, would help the bank update some of its estimates. Inflation is how fast prices are rising. He also gave a warning about those figures. "I'd always be a bit cautious about the monthly numbers," he said. The bank's cash rate is 4.6 per cent, The Nightly reported. Money markets see about an 18 per cent chance of a rate rise at the bank's next meeting on 3 November, the paper said. The cash rate affects what people pay on home loans.