U.S. labor market stays tight as workers remain scarce; manufacturing regains speed

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U.S. job openings fell in April, but remained at significantly high levels, suggesting that wages would continue to rise as companies scramble for workers, and contribute to inflation staying uncomfortably high for a while.

The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS report, from the Labor Department on Wednesday also showed layoffs at a record low, underscoring the jobs market tightness. The Federal Reserve, fighting to push inflation down to its 2% target, is trying to bring demand and supply of labor back into alignment without driving the unemployment rate too high.

Vacancies in the health care and social assistance industry fell by 266,000. There were 162,000 fewer job openings in the retail sector, while open positions in the accommodation and food services industry decreased by 113,000. Labor market tightness was corroborated by the Fed's Beige Book report on Wednesday, though signs are emerging of some loosening. It said one district reported a slowdown in the pace of job growth and "some firms in most of the coastal districts noted hiring freezes or other signs that market tightness had begun to ease."In April, there were 1.92 job openings per every unemployed person, down from 2.0 in March.

"The gap remains near its highest level in postwar U.S. history, suggesting that wage growth will remain firm until further improvements in labor supply and normalization of job openings bring the labor market back into balance," economists at Goldman Sachs wrote in a note.

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Hey Reuters. How about a nice piece on what percentage of covid victims were in the workforce, and what % of covid survivors have too many residual effects to hold a job anymore? Wouldn’t that be relevant to any labor force information at this time?

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