U.S. job market improves

In May there was a slight increase in the number of job advertisements and uptake of staff indicating that the job market is on the up.

Statistically the Labour Department say that between April and May the number of job openings rose by 28,000 to 3.83 million. The greatest peak in 5 years was 3.9 million February so this is a definite sign of improvement.

However, despite an increase of 46,000, the overall hiring statistics were still lower than those of last year.

Most of the new job openings came from the retail sector, which dominated with a huge 80,000 new jobs. 4,000 new positions were also created in both government and construction sectors. Many other industries such as health care and hotels and restaurants actually reduced the number of job openings.

On average there is a ratio of 3.1 unemployed for every open job position, demonstrating that the job market remains competitive. Signs of confidence can be taken from the fact that number of people quitting their jobs rose to 2.2 million.

The implementation of tax increases in January and government spending cuts in March do not seem to have significantly affected the job market this year. In fact the first 6 months of 2013 saw an increase in the average number of jobs a month to 202,000 net.

Consumer confidence and the slow recovery of the US housing market are no doubt aiding the improvement in the job sector. Growth in key areas such as these indicates a positive future in the months and years ahead.

U.S. job market improves

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