Investing.com - The number of job openings in the U.S. rose more than expected in June, remaining in territory consistent with an improving labor market as employers actively seek workers, official data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, the U.S. Labor Department said that the number of job openings, excluding the farming industry, increased to 5.624 million in June from 5.514 million a month earlier, which was revised from the original reading of 5.500 million.
Analysts had expected the number of job openings to rise to 5.574 million.
The report has garnered more attention, as Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen often cites the survey when assessing the state of the labor market.
Hires (5.1 million) and separations (4.9 million) were also little changed in June.
The quits rate was 2.0% and the layoffs and discharges rate was 1.1%.
Following the report, EUR/USD was trading at 1.1177 from around 1.1174 ahead of the release of the data, GBP/USD was at 1.3029 from 1.3024 earlier, while USD/JPY was at 101.22 from 101.20 earlier.
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was at 95.55, compared to 95.56 ahead of the report.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock markets were mixed after the open. The Dow 30 inched up 0.03%, the S&P 500 slipped 0.11%, while the Nasdaq Composite traded down 0.20%.
Elsewhere, in the commodities market, gold futures traded at $1,355.15 a troy ounce, compared to $1,358.05 ahead of the data, while crude oil traded at $43.00 a barrel from $43.04 earlier.