Job ads rise nationwide in July

WASHINGTON -- Companies in July advertised the most jobs in three years, and layoffs declined -- a bit of hope for a weak economy.

Still, many employers are in no rush to fill openings.

The Labor Department said Wednesday that employers increased their postings to 3.23 million in July from 3.17 million in June. That is the largest number of openings since August 2008. Typically, it takes anywhere from one to three months to fill an opening.

More openings don't guarantee more jobs. Employers failed to add any net jobs in August, the worst month for hiring since September 2010. The unemployment rate stayed for the second straight month at 9.1 percent.

Total openings are about 1.1 million higher than they were in July 2009, one month after the recession officially ended. But they are far below the 4.4 million openings that existed in December 2007, when the recession began.

The biggest gains in openings were reported in manufacturing, trade, transportation and utilities. -- AP