By Matt Grossman

Job openings in the U.S. increased in October, bucking a trend of falling vacancies for most of the past two years.

The number of openings on the last day of October was 7.7 million, up from a revised 7.4 million in September, the Labor Department said Tuesday in its latest job openings and labor turnover survey, or Jolts.

October hiring totaled 5.3 million, a reduction compared with 5.6 million in September. Layoffs declined to 1.6 million, versus 1.8 million a month earlier.

The Labor Department's separate monthly employment report has shown solid job-creation figures--setting aside a weak October update that came amid autumn hurricanes and a major strike at Boeing--and a stable unemployment rate of 4.1%, no higher than it was in June.

But Jolts data has suggested the labor market is cooling. The number of openings has trended lower since mid-2022, and September's reading was the weakest figure since January 2021.

Friday brings the November jobs report, the final major labor-market update before the Federal Reserve's Dec. 17-18 meeting.

Write to Matt Grossman at matt.grossman@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

12-03-24 1029ET