US job openings fall in February; lowest since pandemic

More from the article ...

... Job openings, a measure of labor demand, decreased 358,000 to 6.882 million by the last day of February, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said in its Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS report. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 6.918 million unfilled jobs. The job openings rate dropped to 4.2% from 4.4% in January.

Hiring decreased by 498,000 positions to 4.849 million last month, the lowest level since March 2020 at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The hires rate dropped to 3.1% from 3.4% in January. Layoffs and discharges increased 61,000 to a still-low 1.721 million, with the rate rising to 1.1% from 1.0% in the prior month.

A reluctance by employers to engage in large-scale hiring or layoffs has created what Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell this month called a "zero-employment growth equilibrium" that has "a feel of downside risk."

Economists blame the labor market stasis on lingering uncertainty caused by President Donald Trump's trade and immigration policies that have undercut demand for and supply of workers. Private nonfarm payrolls growth averaged only 18,000 jobs per month in the three months through February. ...

OpEd: Trump Turbocharges U.S. Economic Comeback As Socialism Keeps Failing Worldwide
www.heritage.org

... Lower taxes and fewer, fairer regulations have always boosted dynamism, incentivized entrepreneurship and sharpened America's competitive edge.

Around the world, nations stand at a crossroads. Whether they choose the path of Donald Trump is doing in the United States -- or socialism will determine not only their material prosperity, but the security and flourishing of their people.

That's the core finding of the Heritage Foundation's just-released "2026 Index of Economic Freedom." Pro-growth policies are an investment in the people who make nations strong, resilient and prosperous.

That is certainly the approach President Trump took in 2025. Setting the stage for America's comeback and paving the way for greater economic dynamism, his policy choices arrested the precipitous decline of America's economic freedom. America's Index score for President Joe Biden's final year in office was its lowest ever. ...

@#2

Wow.

Wasn't the Heritage Foundation the driving force behind Project 2025?