WASHINGTON — Job openings rose in several sectors of the economy in February, including retail, manufacturing, restaurants and hotels, and transportation, the Labor Department said Tuesday.

The report is consistent with other surveys showing hiring is picking up in those areas. It also echoes last week's national employment report, which showed broad job gains in March.

Total job openings, meanwhile, declined in February, the department said. That's a sign hiring remains sluggish even though employers are starting to add workers as they gain more confidence the recovery is taking hold.

The government's Job Openings and Labor Turnover survey illustrates the churn that takes place in the job market, even when hiring is weak. Employers posted 2.7 million job openings at the end of February. That was about 130,000 less than in the previous month. But it still exceeded the record lows of 2.4 million last year.

"Generally, you're moving in the right direction on job openings," said Michael Feroli, chief U.S. economist at JPMorgan Chase. But "as today's numbers remind us, it's not a straight line up."

Retailers listed 320,000 openings, up from 255,000 the previous month, the department said. Manufacturers posted 17,000 more openings. Restaurants and hotels have added nearly 50,000 in the past two months.

The economy created 162,000 jobs in March, the Labor Department said last week. Yet the unemployment rate remained stuck at 9.7 percent as the number of people looking for work rose.

Other surveys also point to job gains. The Conference Board said last week online job postings have risen by about 650,000 in the past five months to more than 3.9 million.

In another positive sign, a retail hiring index compiled by Kronos showed retailers boosted hiring by 9 percent in March to the highest level since fall 2008. Kronos provides scheduling, payroll and other work force management software and services. The company's index covers 68 companies with 27,000 retail locations.