US Job Openings Rise Slightly after Surging in September

• U.S. job openings increased marginally in October after surging in September, but subdued hiring and the lowest level of resignations in five years underscored the economic uncertainty that economists have largely blamed on tariffs. The Labour Department's monthly Job Openings and Labour Turnover Survey (JOLTS) report was released on Tuesday, December 9, 2025, as Federal Reserve officials started a two-day policy meeting.
• "The job market isn't collapsing but it is certainly losing steam," said Oren Klachkin, financial markets economist at Nationwide. "We anticipate Fed officials will try to get ahead of labour market weakness with another 25-basis points rate cut tomorrow even as inflation remains above the 2% goal."
• Job openings, a measure of labour demand, were up 12,000 to 7.670 million by the last day of October, the Labour Department's Bureau of Labour Statistics (BLS) said. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 7.150 million unfilled jobs. The report incorporated data for September, whose release was cancelled because of the 43-day federal government shutdown.
• Vacancies soared 431,000, the most in nearly a year, to 7.658 million in September. The BLS said it had "temporarily suspended use of the monthly alignment methodology for October preliminary estimates," adding that "use of this methodology will resume with the publication of October final estimates."
• The bulk of the job openings in October were in the trade, transportation and utilities sector, with 239,000 vacancies, mostly at retailers. There were 114,000 fewer open positions in the professional and business services industry. Job openings in the accommodation and food services sector fell by 33,000. The federal government had 25,000 fewer vacancies.
• The job vacancies rate was unchanged at 4.6%. Hiring dropped by 218,000 to 5.149 million in October, with most of the declines in construction, professional and business services, healthcare and social assistance, as well as accommodation and food services industries. The hires rate slipped to 3.2% from 3.4% in September. There were 5.367 million hires in September. Layoffs crept up 73,000 to a still-low 1.854 million, concentrated in the accommodation and food services sector. The layoff rate rose to 1.2% from 1.1% in September.

(Source: Reuters)