US job openings lowest since September
US job openings lowest since September

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US job openings fell in December by more than forecast to a three-month low, consistent with a gradual slowdown in the labor market.
Available positions decreased to 7.60 million from a revised 8.16 million reading in November, the Bureau of Labor Statistics Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, known as JOLTS, showed Tuesday. The figure was below all but one estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists.
The pullback in openings was driven by professional and business services, partially reversing a surge in the prior two months. Health care and social assistance, as well as finance and insurance, also posted large declines.
The figures indicate job openings are back on a downward trend after big increases in recent months. That should continue to suppress wage growth and supports the Federal Reserve’s assertion that the job market is no longer a source of inflationary pressure.
The number of vacancies per unemployed worker, a ratio the Fed watches closely, remained at 1.1 for a sixth month. At its peak in 2022, the ratio was 2 to 1.
Two-year Treasury yields declined, and stocks held onto gains after the report.
The hiring rate held at 3.4%, among the lowest in the past decade. The pace of layoffs was also unchanged at a historically low level.
The so-called quits rate, which measures the percentage of people voluntarily leaving their jobs each month, stayed at 2%. This suggests people are less confident in their ability to find a new position than they were a couple years ago.
The government’s monthly employment report due Friday is expected to show hiring moderated in January, while the unemployment rate held steady at 4.1%. The report will also include revisions to payrolls growth in the year through March 2024 as well as new population estimates from the Census Bureau.
Some economists have questioned the validity of the JOLTS data, in part due to the survey’s low response rate and heavy revisions. A similar index by job-posting site Indeed showed openings rose slightly in December.
(With assistance from Chris Middleton.)