Small Businesses Report Shows Worker Shortage Remain High in September, NFIB Says

MT newswire2026/10/01 17:06

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01:06 PM EDT, 10/01/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Small businesses reported that the level of worker shortages eased modestly but remained elevated in September, with a seasonally adjusted 32% of respondents in a National Federation of Independent Business survey released Thursday saying they were having trouble hiring the workers that they needed, down from 35% in the previous month. The NFIB's Small Business Employment Index fell to 100.6 in September from 101.8 in August, above the historical average of 100.0 but below the 2025 average of 101.2. The percentage of business owners reporting labor quality as their top business concern rose to 26% from 23%, while labor costs were listed as single most important concern by 6%, down from 7% in August. "Overall employment conditions are softening, though the small business labor market is still tighter than normal," said NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg. "Between the ongoing difficulty of finding qualified workers and elevated operation costs, employers are proceeding more cautiously as they look to make hiring decisions." About 51% of owners said they were trying to hire in the month, down from 56% in August. Around 87% of the respondents who were hiring or trying to hire reported finding few or no qualified applicants for the position they were trying to fill. Hiring plans for the next three months were unchanged with a net 17% of respondents saying they expect to hire. A seasonally adjusted net 28% of owners said they needed to raise compensation to hire workers in September, down from 31% in August. A net 20% of owners said they plan to raise compensation in the next three months, up from 18% in August.

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01:10 PM EDT, 10/05/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Broad Market Indicators Broad-market exchange-traded funds IWM and IVV were higher. Actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) added 0.6%. US equity indexes were higher after midday Monday as government bond yields rose and crude oil fell. Energy IShares US Energy ETF (IYE) and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) were each up about 1.1%. Technology The State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) gained 0.4%; iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) added 0.6%, and iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) was 0.6% higher. The State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor (XSD) slipped 0.6%, and iShares Semiconductor (SOXX) fell 0.2%. Financial The State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) added 0.7%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) advanced 2.2%, and its bearish counterpart, Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ), declined 1.9%. Commodities Crude oil lost 1.1%, and the United States Oil Fund (USO) fell 1.4%. Natural gas added 0.9%, and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) gained 0.7%. Gold on Comex eased 0.1%, and the State Street SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) lost 0.4%. Silver was up 1.5%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) gained 0.7%. Consumer The State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) was 0.5% higher, and the Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (VDC) rose 0.5%. The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) added 0.4%. VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was up 0.2%, and the State Street SPDR S&P Retail (XRT) edged up 0.1%. Healthcare The State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV) added 0.5%, while iShares US Healthcare (IYH) gained 0.5%, and Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) rose 0.6%. IShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) advanced 0.7%. Industrial The State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR (XLI) added 0.4%. Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) rose 0.5%, and iShares US Industrials (IYJ) gained 0.7%. Cryptocurrency In midday activity, bitcoin (BTC-USD) shed 0.2%. Among cryptocurrency ETFs, ProShares Bitcoin ETF (BITO) added 1.2%,

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Getlink reports 550,000,000 shares outstanding, 642,851,718 total voting rights as of Sept. 30, 2026

Getlink disclosed 550,000,000 ordinary shares outstanding as of Sept. 30, 2026. Theoretical voting rights totaled 642,851,718. Exercisable voting rights stood at 635,332,063. Disclaimer: This news brief was created by Public Technologies (PUBT) using generative artificial intelligence. While PUBT strives to provide accurate and timely information, this AI-generated content is for informational purposes only and should not be interpreted as financial, investment, or legal advice. Getlink SE published the original content used to generate this news brief via Business Wire (Ref. ID: 202610051200BIZWIRE_USPR_____20261005_BW048564) on October 05, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained therein.

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