U.S. Job Openings Rise to 7.27 Million as Manufacturing Drives July Gains

U.S. job openings increased to 7.27 million in July, led by durable goods manufacturing, while hiring remained subdued, layoffs stayed low and worker quits fell to their lowest rate since 2020.

By yourNEWS Media Newsroom

U.S. employers posted more job openings in July as manufacturing, health care and wholesale trade increased demand for workers, even as actual hiring remained restrained and employees grew less willing to leave their jobs.

The number of available positions rose by 89,000 to 7.27 million in July from a downwardly revised 7.18 million in June, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Sept. 1.

The total came in slightly below the consensus forecast of 7.3 million.

Durable goods manufacturing accounted for the largest increase, adding 76,000 openings. Health care and social assistance followed with 54,000 additional vacancies, while wholesale trade added 50,000.

Construction openings increased by 28,000.

Those gains were partially offset by declines elsewhere. Transportation, warehousing and utilities reported 67,000 fewer openings, while professional and business services recorded a decrease of 65,000.

The data suggest employers continue to need workers even though overall payroll growth has slowed considerably.

A little more than 400,000 jobs have been added so far this year, averaging approximately 61,000 per month, while the economy unexpectedly lost 23,000 positions in July.

Despite the weaker pace of payroll creation, job openings have remained relatively stable and slightly above levels seen before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hiring has not kept pace with the availability of positions.

Employers made approximately 5.1 million hires in July, little changed from the previous month. Professional and business services accounted for a particularly large decline, with hiring in the sector falling by 188,000.

Surveys of small businesses indicate some employers expect to increase hiring in the months ahead, though businesses continue to report difficulty finding qualified workers.

At the same time, companies have generally avoided widespread job cuts.

Layoffs and discharges remained essentially unchanged at 1.7 million in July. Finance and insurance recorded the largest notable decline in terminations, falling by 22,000.

The absence of broad-based layoffs has been one of the defining characteristics of the labor market over the past two years.

The unemployment rate remains at 4.1%, while weekly unemployment claims have stayed within a historically low range of 189,000 to 230,000 throughout 2026.

Economists have increasingly focused on slowing labor-force growth as one explanation for why relatively modest payroll gains have not caused unemployment to rise substantially.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas estimates that the current breakeven employment rate — the number of jobs the economy needs to add each month to keep unemployment steady — is close to zero.

“When labor supply is barely growing, monthly job gains are naturally going to run low,” Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh said during his Aug. 28 keynote address at Jackson Hole.

“In my view, the relatively low turnover in today’s labor market is partly a result of the significant rematching between employers and employees that happened at scale in the post-pandemic environment.”

Workers also showed less willingness to voluntarily leave their positions in July.

The number of quits fell by 157,000 to 3.06 million from a slightly downwardly revised 3.21 million in June.

The quits rate, which measures voluntary departures as a share of employment, declined to 1.9% from 2%, marking its lowest level since 2020.

Economists closely watch quits because workers are generally more likely to resign when they feel confident they can find another job.

The combination of steady openings, low layoffs and declining quits portrays a labor market with limited movement in either direction: employers are reluctant to reduce staff significantly, but they are also hiring cautiously.

Several additional reports this week will provide a clearer picture of whether that balance held into August.

Economists expect the upcoming nonfarm payrolls report to show approximately 58,000 new jobs. A Chicago Federal Reserve model indicates the unemployment rate is likely to remain unchanged.

Jay Woods, chief market strategist at Freedom Capital Markets, said investors will be watching closely for evidence of a sharper deterioration.

“The one thing the Street needs to avoid is another negative payroll print or a sharp rise in unemployment that suddenly raises recession concerns,” Woods said in a note emailed to The Epoch Times.

“The hope is for modest job creation, stable unemployment, and contained wage growth.

“That would be the Goldilocks scenario.”

RBC economists similarly said the broader employment picture remains stable despite limited hiring.

“Ultimately, if the labor market were weakening, the holistic picture would say so,” they wrote in an Aug. 28 research note, adding that current tightness is primarily a “supply story.”

“As of late, the move lower in the unemployment rate has been a labor force participation story.

“The tightness that we have been witnessing continues to be a supply story as retirements remain elevated and immigration stays exceptionally low.”

Before the August jobs report is released, investors and policymakers will also receive ADP private-payroll figures, Challenger layoff data and the latest weekly unemployment claims.

Those reports will help determine whether July’s combination of rising job openings, restrained hiring and low layoffs continued into the final month of summer.