Despite the larger-than-expected decline in job vacancies reported by the Department of Labor on Tuesday, April 4, the labor market remains tight, with 1.7 job openings for every unemployed person in February, down from
Job openings, a measure of labor demand, were down 632,000 to 9.9 million on the last day of February, the lowest level since May 2021, the monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS report, showed. They fell 1.3 million in the first two months of this year. Small and medium-sized businesses, who have been the drivers of job growth, accounted for most of the decrease, with establishments with 1,000 workers and more reporting a small reduction in job openings.Stocks on Wall Street were trading lower. The dollar fell against a basket of currencies. US Treasury prices rose.
“The labor market was starting to lose steam even before the banking crisis hit the economy in March and this sets up a dangerous situation where tighter credit conditions could prompt actual layoffs in the months ahead as corporations struggle to get costs under control,” said Christopher Rupkey, chief economist at FWDBONDS in New York.
About 115,000 people resigned in the professional and business services sector. In the accommodation and food services industry, 93,000 workers quit, while wholesale trade reported 31,000 resignations. About 18,000 educational services workers quit in February. But there were fewer quits in the finance and insurance industry, where resignations fell 39,000.