In September, job vacancies in the United States fell to the lowest level since early 2021, and layoffs increased, consistent with a slowdown in the labor market momentum.

The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) released by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics on Tuesday shows that the number of job vacancies fell from a downwardly revised 7.86 million in August to 7.44 million. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg estimated a median of 8 million.

Job vacancies have been declining for most of the past two years, and this report shows a general decrease in job vacancies across various industries. The number of layoffs has risen to the highest level since January 2023, while the number of employees resigning voluntarily has decreased - indicating a reduced confidence in finding new jobs.

Other indicators suggest that the labor market and the economy remain strong, prompting traders to scale back bets on a significant rate cut by the Federal Reserve next week. Another report on Tuesday showed that US consumer confidence rose to the highest level since the beginning of this year in October.

The data, released before the October non-farm payroll report scheduled for Friday, may be difficult to interpret due to the Boeing workers' strike and two destructive hurricanes. Expected.Non-farm employmentThe rapid growth seen in September is expected to significantly slow down, while the unemployment rate is forecasted to remain at 4.1%.

The decrease in job vacancies in September mainly occurred in the medical care and social assistance, government, lodging, and dining services sectors, as expected after the peak summer season.

The ratio of job vacancies to unemployed persons closely monitored by the Federal Reserve remains at 1.1, consistent with the level during the strong labor market of 2019. In 2022, this number peaked at 2 to 1.

One highlight in the report is recruiting, reaching the fastest pace since May. However, overall recruitment speed has been declining since reaching its latest peak in 2021.