US: Job opening at a record high - ANZ

The June JOLTS survey showed that US job opening rose to a record high at 6.163m vs 5.702m in June, which implies strong momentum ahead for the US jobs market, according to analysts at ANZ.

Key Quotes

“The July NFIB small business optimism index rose to 105.2 vs 103.6 in June and indicative of still strong business confidence despite the uncertain political climate in Washington. The percentage of firms planning to increase hiring rose to 19% (June 15%) and those expecting a better economy rose to 37% (June 33%).”

“Looking at the detail within the US JOLTS data, not only did demand rise, it was the largest increase since July 2015. The ratio of job openings to unemployment hit a 16-year high. So labour is becoming harder to find and it’s also a sign of a skills mis-match. However, fewer people quit their jobs (that’s a measure of confidence or the lack of it) and layoffs were up, though still historically low. Such signals are a sign of the cyclical and structural forces hitting the economy.”