U.S. Job Openings Dipped In August

The number of U.S. job openings fell slightly in August, a troubling sign for a labor market that is recovering at a painfully slow pace.

Job openings - a measure of labor demand - dropped to 3.56 million from 3.59 million in July, the Labor Department said on Wednesday in its monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey.

The data casts a small shadow over recent signs of improvement in the labor market.

Government data last week showed the U.S. unemployment rate unexpectedly dropped to 7.8 percent in September, its lowest level since President Barack Obama took office. That was seen as providing a boost to Obama's re-election bid.