Executive search firm ZRG partners reported its Global Industrial Hiring Index rose to a reading of 122.0 in the third quarter from the second quarter’s reading of 112.7. And it was up from a reading of 107.1 in the third quarter of last year.

“With the index matching its four-year high, there is clearly a lot of positive momentum in the industrial space. If the Heavy Equipment and Oil & Gas sectors can continue to expand hiring activity in the coming quarters, that will be a positive sign for a strong 2018.”

Hiring in the US was strong in the third quarter, up 11% from the prior quarter and 31% over year. Stronger hiring patterns provide evidence that US companies are confident and are now seeking talent across a number of industrial subsectors, according to the report.

Globally, the two subsectors that showed the most relative strength in hiring demand were diversified manufacturing and heavy equipment, according to the report. Oil and gas companies also seemed to accelerate their hiring efforts. On the flip side, hiring in the automotive subsector slowed again, on both a quarter-over-quarter and year-over-year basis.

The index’s analysis utilizes a proprietary algorithm that looks at hiring within selected benchmark companies in seven distinct segments. ZRG Partners collaborates with data from the CEB TalentNeuron tool and Pitchbook to assemble the sector data that drives the index.