US job openings unexpectedly rebounded in August as the labor market remained surprisingly resilient in the face of an aggressive interest rate hike campaign by the Federal Reserve.
The Labor Department said on Tuesday there were 9.6 million job openings in August, a sharp increase from the revised 8.92 million openings reported the previous month.
Economists polled by Refinitiv had expected a reading of 8.8 million. It marked the first time in three months that job listings were higher.
The Federal Reserve is watching these numbers closely as it tries to gauge labor market tightness and keep inflation under control.
The higher-than-expected numbers indicate that the demand for workers still exceeds the available supply of workers.
The central bank has responded to the inflationary crisis and a very tight labor market by raising interest rates at the fastest rate in decades.
There were 9.6 million job openings in August, up from 8.92 million openings in the previous month. Getty Images
Officials have so far approved 11 rate hikes, raising the benchmark federal funds rate to the highest level since 2001. Policymakers have signaled that additional rate hikes are on the table this year if economic data shows a resurgence in price pressures.
The latest employment data could give policymakers more room to raise rates higher – and keep them higher for longer.
“Some wonder why the Fed expects to raise interest rates again?” said Greg McBride, chief financial analyst at Bankrate. “With 1.5 job openings for every unemployed worker, there is little evidence of a significant easing in labor market demand, a risk to lower inflation.”
The increase in vacancies last month was largely due to professional and business services, financial and other services and non-durable goods manufacturing, according to the report.
Job openings remain historically high. Before the COVID-19 pandemic began in early 2020, the record high was 7.6 million.
There are about 1.5 jobs for every unemployed American.
“One of the main things the Fed wants to see is that the supply of labor matches the demand for labor, and the economy is not doing enough,” said Jeffrey Roach, chief economist at LPL Financial.
Meanwhile, the number of Americans who quit their jobs rose to 3.6 million, or about 2.3% of the workforce, indicating that workers remain confident they can leave their jobs and find work elsewhere.
Switching jobs has been a hit for many workers over the past year: Job switchers saw their real hourly wages rise 6.4% in July, compared with a 5.4% wage increase for workers who stayed in the same job, according to recent Atlanta Fed data.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
