The number of job openings unexpectedly rose in August, the Labor Department reported earlier this month, after three consecutive months of declines.
The monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey found 9.61 million openings, up from a revised 8.9 million in July and ahead of the Refinitiv consensus estimate of 8.92 million.
The number of people quitting their jobs, a proxy for workers’ confidence in the labor market, stayed the same at 2.3%. The number of new hires totaled 5.86 million.
The pickup in openings reflects a more than half-million increase at professional and business services as well as more postings in finance and insurance, education and manufacturing. Learn more.