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U.S. job openings jump to fresh record high in April – Metro US

U.S. job openings jump to fresh record high in April

FILE PHOTO: Career center reopens for in-person appointments in Kentucky
FILE PHOTO: Career center reopens for in-person appointments in Kentucky

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. job openings surged by nearly one million to a new record high in April, while more people voluntarily left their employment, strengthening the view that a recent moderation in job growth was due to supply constraints.

Job openings, a measure of labor demand, increased by 998,000 to 9.3 million on the last day of April, the highest level since the series began in December 2000, the Labor Department said in its monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS report, on Tuesday.

Hiring was little changed at 6.1 million in April from 6.0 million in the prior month. The government reported last Friday that job growth picked up in May, with employers raising wages, but the pace of hiring was below economists’ expectations for a second straight month.

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Paul Simao)