The number of job openings in the US declined by 256,000 to 7.079 million in August 2026, the lowest level in five months. This followed an upwardly revised 7.335 million in July and came in below market expectations of 7.23 million.
Openings decreased across several sectors, including health care and social assistance (-115,000), professional and business services (-119,000), manufacturing (-54,000), construction (-48,000), real estate and rental and leasing (-45,000), and wholesale trade (-36,000).
Regionally, job openings fell in the Northeast (-78,000), the Midwest (-6,000), and the West (-243,000), but increased in the South (+71,000).
Hiring was little changed at 5.2 million, and total separations held steady at 5.1 million. Within separations, quits remained at 3.1 million, while layoffs and discharges, at 1.6 million, were also essentially unchanged.
