U.S. job openings declined by 62,000 to 8.8 million in November, according to a Wednesday report from the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics. Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI |
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Jan. 3 (UPI) -- U.S. job openings fell slightly in November, according to Data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics Wednesday.
The monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover report found that job openings dropped by 62,000 from October to November to a total of 8.8 million.
The decline in job openings was the most severe in transportation, warehousing and utilities, where they fell by 128,000, while federal government job openings also decreased by 58,000.
Conversely, openings for jobs in wholesale trade grew by 63,000 to offset the other losses.
The overall total of job openings was in line with Dow Jones estimates but well below a series high of 12 million in March 2022.
The total job openings rate was unchanged at 5.3% as total separations from employment stood at 5.3 million, a decline of 363,000.
Of those, 3.5 million workers quit while 1.5 million were laid off or fired as the number of workers quitting jobs dropped by 157,000 for a quit rate of 3.4%.The layoff and discharge rate was 1%.
The hire rate was also little changed at 3.5%, according to the BLS.
"Today's JOLTS data is another signal that the Fed is delivering a soft landing," Lazard chief market strategist Ron Temple, told CNBC. "Today's report is good news for American workers and the economy, but it also suggests to me that the Fed is unlikely to cut rates as aggressively in 2024, as markets currently indicate, given the risk of reigniting inflationary pressures."