Good news for job seekers: employers are still hiring.

A survey of Australian employers suggests the job market is likely to remain steady in the final three months of 2012.

The latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey, which measures the hiring intentions of Australian employers, found the net outlook for jobseekers was positive.

A fifth of employers plan to increase their rate of hiring during the quarter, while just 11 per cent expect to hire fewer people than previously expected.

ManpowerGroup Australia managing director Lincoln Crawley said the outlook for the jobs market was weaker compared to a year ago but remained resilient.

“While the last 12 months have seen a slow downward trend for employer hiring confidence, there is certainly no sign of panic,” he said on Tuesday.

“Overall, the job forecast is down but certainly not out.”

The biggest increase in job opportunities is expected to come from the services sector, with a net employment outlook (the number of firms planning to increase hiring minus the number of firms planning to decrease hiring) of +16 per cent.

The growth outlook also appears strong in the mining sector, despite recent concerns about falling commodity prices and slowing economic growth in China, with a net employment outlook of +10 per cent.

Of the states and territories, the employment outlook is strongest in the Northern Territory (+24 per cent) and weakest in Tasmania (-6 per cent).