Private sector more sombre about job vacancies
The mood of the Dutch private sector concerning developments on the job market has deteriorated in the past few months. In August, optimists and pessimists balanced each other out, after four months of cautious optimism.
The monthly vacancy indicator provides a quick indication of the trend in job vacancies in the private sector, based on the opinions of businesses in this sector. Prior to the recent marginal decrease, the mood among these businesses regarding job vacancies had improved almost continuously for eighteen months.
Vacancy indicator
Construction sector increasingly optimistic about job vacancies
Opinions on job vacancy trends differ greatly within the private sector. In August, optimism prevailed in the manufacturing industry and construction. However, the mood among manufacturers is deteriorating, whereas the construction sector is still becoming more optimistic. The commercial services sector has been in a negative frame of mind since the spring of 2011.
Number of job vacancies rises further
On 14 august 2014 Statistics Netherlands published quarterly data on the number of job vacancies: just over 108 thousand at the end of June, up from just under 104 thousand at the end of March. This was the fourth consecutive quarterly increase in the number of job vacancies. There were significantly more vacancies in the private sector, but only slightly more in the public sector.
Job vacancies, seasonally adjusted
More figures can be found in dossier Business cycle.
For more information on economic indicators, the reader is referred to the Economic Monitor.