How will record US job vacancies affect interest rates?

Not only is the number of job openings in America the highest it’s ever been, but it’s also taking businesses a record amount of time to fill those openings.

According to Dice Holdings’ DHI-DFH Mean Vacancy Duration measure, it took US businesses an average of 29 days to fill a job opening in July.

Dice bases the number using data from the the BLS’s Job Openings & Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). A job is filled when someone accepts an offer to take an open position.

“Longer vacancy durations and falling unemployment rates point to a considerable tightening of labor markets in recent months,” said University of Chicago’s Steven Davis.  “Wage pressures are likely to intensify if the economy continues along this path.”

This is another piece of good news for the labor market, which is big considering the Fed’s rate hike decision next week will have a lot to do with American jobs.

This article is published in collaboration with Business Insider. Publication does not imply endorsement of views by the World Economic Forum.

To keep up with the Agenda subscribe to our weekly newsletter.

Author: Bob Bryan is a Finance and Markets Intern for Business Insider.

Image: Morning commuters are seen outside the New York Stock Exchange, July 30, 2012. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid.