Job Openings Increase in July

Washington, DC, Sept. 9, 2010--Job openings are rising modestly, according to Labor Department statistics.

The number of jobs advertised rose by 6.2% to 3.04 million in July, according to the Labor Department's latest data.

That's the highest total since April, when temporary census hiring inflated that month's figure.

Openings have risen 30% since July 2009, when they fell to their lowest level on records dating to 2000.

Competition for job openings, in the meantime, remains fierce. About 4.8 unemployed people, on average, are competing for each opening, Wednesday's report shows, compared with about 1.8 before the recession.