U.S. job postings unexpectedly rebounded in August as the labor market remains surprisingly resilient in the face of the Federal Reserve’s aggressive interest rate hike campaign.
The Labor Department said Tuesday that there were 9.6 million job vacancies in August, a sharp increase from the 8.92 million revised job vacancies reported the previous month.
Economists surveyed by Refinitiv expected a reading of 8.8 million. It was the first time in three months that job postings trended upward.
The Federal Reserve is closely monitoring these numbers as it tries to gauge labor market tightness and fight inflation.
The higher-than-expected figure indicates that the demand for employees still exceeds the supply of available workers.
The central bank has responded to the inflation crisis and extremely tight labor market by raising interest rates at the fastest pace in decades.
There were 9.6 million vacant positions in August, an increase from 8.92 million vacant positions the previous month. fake images
So far, officials have approved 11 rate increases, raising the benchmark federal funds rate to the highest level since 2001. Policymakers have signaled that an additional rate hike is on the table this year if data Economic indicators point to a resurgence of price pressures.
The latest employment data could give policymakers more room to raise rates and keep them elevated for longer.
“Anyone wondering why the Federal Reserve expects to raise interest rates again?” said Greg McBride, chief financial analyst at Bankrate. “With 1.5 vacancies for every unemployed worker, there is little evidence of a substantial easing of labor market demand, a risk of lower inflation.”
According to the report, the increase in job openings last month was largely due to professional and business services, finance and other services, and non-durable goods manufacturing.
Job offers remain historically high. Before the COVID-19 pandemic began in early 2020, the highest number on record was 7.6 million.
There are approximately 1.5 jobs for every unemployed American.
“One of the main things the Fed wants to see is labor supply matching labor demand, and the economy is not there yet,” 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 employment elsewhere. place.
Changing jobs has been a windfall for many workers over the past year: Those who changed jobs saw their real hourly wages rise 6.4% in July, compared to a 5.4% wage increase for workers who they stayed in the same job, according to recent data from the Atlanta Federal Reserve. .
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Source: vtt.edu.vn