US job openings fell by 178,000 in June to 7.359 million

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), reported on Wednesday, 5 August 2026 (14 Mordad 1405), job openings in the US economy fell by 178,000 through the end of June to 7,359,000. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 7,400,000. Openings in health care and social assistance dropped by 147,000.

The job openings rate eased to 4.4 percent in June from 4.5 percent in May. Hires, by contrast, rose by 96,000 to 5,348,000 and the hiring rate climbed to 3.4 percent from 3.3 percent. Layoffs and discharges were little changed at 1,766,000, with the rate steady at 1.1 percent.

The Federal Reserve held its benchmark rate in the 3.50 to 3.75 percent range last week, although three policy committee members dissented in favour of a 0.25 percentage point increase. The July employment report is due Friday, with economists forecasting a gain of 80,000 non farm jobs and an unemployment rate steady at 4.2 percent.