Job Openings in U.S. Increase to 7.3 Million in October (1)

U.S. job openings unexpectedly increased in October, another sign of tightness in the labor market with the jobless rate at a half-century low.

The number of <-rte-company state="{"_id":"0000016f-14b2-d5b8-a37f-3fbef9590000","_type":"00000160-4b23-d8bd-adfd-4b3348fd0000"}">positions waiting to be filled rose by 235,000 to 7.27 million, according to the Labor Department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS, released Tuesday. The median forecast called for 7 million. The <-rte-company state="{"_id":"0000016f-14b2-d5b8-a37f-3fbef9590001","_type":"00000160-4b23-d8bd-adfd-4b3348fd0000"}">quits rate held at 2.3%.

Key Insights

• The pickup from a 1 1/2-year low shows openings are stabilizing after falling from a record a year earlier. Companies have hired at a slower pace this year amid struggles to find qualified ...