Job openings in the U.S. fall to the lowest level in three years

By Jeffry Bartash

Fewer people are quitting one job for another

The numbers: The number of job openings in the U.S. fell to 8.5 million in March and touched the lowest level in more than three years, suggesting the demand for labor is slowly waning.

Job postings fell from 8.8 million in February.

Many openings are never actually filled. Still, the trend in job postings gives clues on the health of the labor market and the broader economy.

New openings have tapered off from a record 12 million in 2022. They are still quite a bit higher now, though, than they were before the pandemic started in 2020.

The number of people quitting jobs, meanwhile, slipped to 3.3 million, the Labor Department said Wednesday. That's also the lowest level in three years.

Fewer people quitting is another sign of slackening demand for labor. A few years ago companies were offering big bonuses and other incentives to attract workers.

Key details: Job openings fell the most in March in construction and finance and insurance.

Job openings rose the most in public education at the local and state level.

Some 5.5 million people were hired in March, down from 5.8 million in the prior month. That's the smallest increase since the pandemic in early 2020.

Some 5.2 million people lost jobs in March. Typically millions of people lose and gain jobs in every month in a huge U.S. economy in which roughly 160 million people are employed.

The number of job openings for each unemployed worker fell a tick to 1.3 from 1.4.

The ratio is down from a peak of 2.0 in 2022 and almost back to a pre-pandemic norm of around 1.2 or so. Fed officials had been watching the ratio closely as a gauge of labor-market strength.

The U.S. is forecast to add 240,000 new jobs in April. The jobs report comes out on Friday.

Big picture: The jobs market is not as hot as it was a few years ago. Yet lots of companies are still hiring and unemployment is low.

The Fed would like to see the labor market cool off a bit further to help ease upward pressure on inflation. Employee compensation rose in the first quarter at the fastest pace in a year and a half.

Looking ahead: "Today's report reinforces our view that the labor market will continue to see signs of slowing," said Eugenio Aleman, chief economist at Raymond James.

Market reaction: The Dow Jones industrial average DJIA and S&P 500 SPX were mixed in Wednesday trades

-Jeffry Bartash

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05-01-24 1121ET

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