WASHINGTON — Employers posted a sharp increase in job openings in October, raising hopes that hiring could pick up in the coming months.
Businesses and government advertised nearly 3.4 million jobs at the end of October, up about 12 percent from the previous month, the Labor Department said yesterday. That reverses two months of declines and is the highest total since August 2008, just before the financial crisis intensified.
Overall, the number of advertised jobs has increased by about 1 million, or 44 percent, since the low point of July 2009, a month after the recession ended. But openings are still far below the 4.4 million advertised in December in 2007, when the recession began.
The latest job openings data follows last week’s disappointing employment report for November. That showed the economy added a net total of only 39,000 jobs, a steep drop from the previous month, and the unemployment rate rose to 9.8 percent from 9.6 percent.
But some economists consider yesterday’s report, known as the Job Openings and Labor Turnover survey, to be a signal of how much hiring might take place one to three months after the period covered by the survey.
Jonathan Basile, an economist at Credit Suisse, said the JOLTS report echoes other recent data showing that the economy is improving. That improvement will likely translate into more hiring soon, he said.
Last week’s employment report “should turn out to be just a bump in the jobs recovery road,’’ Basile said.
Separately yesterday, the Federal Reserve reported that consumer borrowing rose in October by the largest amount in more than two years, led by a big rise in the category that includes student loans.
The Fed said consumer credit rose at an annual rate of $3.4 billion in October, the largest increase since a $5.7 billion gain in July 2008. Consumer credit was also up in September.
But the strength in both September and October is being heavily influenced as the result of a recently enacted law that makes the government the primary lender to students.
The increase of $3.4 billion in overall credit surpassed the flat reading that economists had expected. The gain translated into a 1.7 percent rise and followed a 0.6 percent increase in September. Those were the first back-to-back monthly gains since mid-2008.
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http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2010/12/08/in_hopeful_sign_number_of_job_openings_up/
Businesses and government advertised nearly 3.4 million jobs at the end of October, up about 12 percent from the previous month, the Labor Department said yesterday. That reverses two months of declines and is the highest total since August 2008, just before the financial crisis intensified.
Overall, the number of advertised jobs has increased by about 1 million, or 44 percent, since the low point of July 2009, a month after the recession ended. But openings are still far below the 4.4 million advertised in December in 2007, when the recession began.
The latest job openings data follows last week’s disappointing employment report for November. That showed the economy added a net total of only 39,000 jobs, a steep drop from the previous month, and the unemployment rate rose to 9.8 percent from 9.6 percent.
But some economists consider yesterday’s report, known as the Job Openings and Labor Turnover survey, to be a signal of how much hiring might take place one to three months after the period covered by the survey.
Jonathan Basile, an economist at Credit Suisse, said the JOLTS report echoes other recent data showing that the economy is improving. That improvement will likely translate into more hiring soon, he said.
Last week’s employment report “should turn out to be just a bump in the jobs recovery road,’’ Basile said.
Separately yesterday, the Federal Reserve reported that consumer borrowing rose in October by the largest amount in more than two years, led by a big rise in the category that includes student loans.
The Fed said consumer credit rose at an annual rate of $3.4 billion in October, the largest increase since a $5.7 billion gain in July 2008. Consumer credit was also up in September.
But the strength in both September and October is being heavily influenced as the result of a recently enacted law that makes the government the primary lender to students.
The increase of $3.4 billion in overall credit surpassed the flat reading that economists had expected. The gain translated into a 1.7 percent rise and followed a 0.6 percent increase in September. Those were the first back-to-back monthly gains since mid-2008.
Read More
http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2010/12/08/in_hopeful_sign_number_of_job_openings_up/
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