US Job Openings In April Surge To Highest In Almost Two Years

US job openings in April hit their highest in almost two years while hiring fell sharply, according to a government report on Tuesday.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics found in its Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) that available employment hit 7.6 million for April, up by 731,000 from the past month. This is the highest level since May 2024.

The overall number of hires fell to 5.1 million, while layoffs declined slightly to 1.7 million.

Quits,which serve as a measure of workers' willingness or ability to leave jobs, also fell to a little under 3 million, recording a decline of 183,000. The quits rate declined to 1.9 per cent, the lowest level since August 2020.

The rise in openings put the available jobs above the number of unemployed workers. Compared with the size of the labour force, the rate of openings increased by 0.4 percentage point to 4.6%.

When taking into account the industry, almost all the openings were recorded in the professional and business services category, as per CNBC. The sector added 668,000 positions, indicating a possible impact from artificial intelligence on labour demand.

Healthcare and social assistance added 89,000 jobs while financial activities recorded a fall of 134,000. Most other categories recorded little change.

The figures indicate that labour demand is steadying in 2026, after almost-zero job growth last year, as per Bloomberg.

While job openings still remain much lower than the levels seen in the pandemic reopening period, the stabilisation may undermine the potential for interest-rate cuts as Federal Reserve officials discuss the possibility of hiking the rates.

In broad terms, the jobs report highlights the continuing low-hire, low-fire environment that has been prevalent in the job market since early 2025. The unemployment rate has barely shifted at 4.3% while weekly jobless claims have held low except for brief spikes.

Federal Reserve officials watch the JOLTS reports for signs of labour slack. Last year, central bank officials were worried about weakness in the labour market. They have now shifted their concern to inflation impacts from tariffs and soaring energy prices.

The government's monthly jobs report for May is due this Friday. Apart from that, the Federal Reserve meets later this month. The central bank is widely expected to keep interest rates steady.