The U.S. National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) said on Thursday that small-business owners in the U.S. added a net 0.13 worker per company in August, up from 0.05 in July.

The NFIB surveyed 656 small business owners. More employers reported that they could not find qualified workers.

"This strong a gain sets the stage for a decline in the unemployment rate and indicates that labour markets remain tight with owners having difficulty finding qualified workers," NFIB chief economist William Dunkelberg said.