August Job Openings Fall, Hiring Moves Higher

12:59 PM EDT, 09/29/2026 (MT Newswires) -- US job openings fell in August amid a sharp decline in professional and business services, while overall hiring ticked higher, official data showed Tuesday. Vacancies dropped to about 7.08 million last month from July's upwardly revised 7.34 million reading, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' job openings and labor turnover survey. The consensus was for a 7.23 million print for August in a survey compiled by Bloomberg. The latest reading marked the lowest level in five months, Stifel said in a note to clients. Private job openings declined to 6.35 million in August from 6.56 million the prior month, according to BLS data. Professional and business services saw a drop of 119,000 jobs, while private education and health services logged a decline of 101,000. Hiring increased to 5.19 million from 5.15 million, while the hiring rate rose to 3.3% from 3.2%. Separations declined to 5.07 million from 5.13 million, while layoffs fell to 1.64 million from 1.70 million. The ratio of job openings to unemployed people last month reached the lowest since March, indicating that there are now "slightly less" jobs available for every person unemployed, Stifel said in the note. The metric is watched closely by Federal Reserve as a proxy of the balance between labor supply and demand, according to the firm. The BLS is scheduled to report the September jobs report Friday. That report is likely to show the US economy added 98,000 nonfarm jobs this month. Earlier this month, official data showed addition of 162,000 nonfarm jobs in August, almost triple the tally expected by Wall Street at the time. A growing number of Fed officials have recently signaled the need for a tighter monetary policy amid persistent price pressures. Earlier in September, the central bank increased its benchmark lending rate by 25 basis points, marking its first hike in just over three years, as it seeks to bring inflation down to its 2% target. The Federal Open Market Committee at the time signaled another hike later this year. In his press conference following the FOMC's latest decision, Fed Chair Kevin Warsh painted a largely positive picture of the labor market. Markets are currently pricing in a 68% probability that the Fed will lift interest rates again by 25 basis points next month, according to the CME FedWatch tool. The remaining odds point to a pause.