private sector opinions on job vacancies unchanged

Dutch private businesses’ views about job market developments remained unchanged in November compared to October and September. In July and August the mood was about the same. Pessimists and optimists have more or less cancelled each other out for five months now.

The monthly vacancy indicator provides a quick indication of the trend in private sector job vacancies, based on the opinions of businesses in this sector. Before the recent stagnation, private sector opinions concerning job vacancies had improved almost continuously for eighteen months.

Vacancy indicator

Construction and manufacturing more optimistic

Opinions on job vacancy trends differ greatly within the private sector. In November optimism prevailed in the construction industry. The sentiment in construction has been improving almost continuously since January 2013  and reached its highest level since the start of the survey in January 1998.

The mood of manufacturers also improved. The views of construction and manufacturing companies has been positive for about a year now. In commercial services, on the other hand, pessimists still slightly outnumber optimists. The sentiment in commercial services has been stable for the last three months.

Vacancy indicator by sector

More job vacancies

The number of job vacancies rose again in the third quarter of 2014, to reach 113 thousand at the end of September. This is 5 thousand more than in the previous quarter. It is the fifth quarter in a row that the number of job vacancies has risen. The number rose across all sectors, but by most in trade and manufacturing. This corresponds to the growth in these two sectors this year.

Job vacancies, seasonally adjusted

More figures can be found in dossier Business cycle.

For more information on economic indicators, see the Economic Monitor.