Job Openings in U.S. Decrease in December as Hiring Slows
Source: Bloomberg
By Shobhana Chandra Feb 11, 2014 10:44 AM ET
Job openings in the U.S. fell in December from an almost six-year high and hiring slowed, a sign the labor market cooled at the end of the year.
The number of positions waiting to be filled declined by 43,000 to 3.99 million, from a revised 4.03 million the prior month, the Labor Department said today in Washington. Fewer Americans quit their jobs.
The report follows data last week that showed a smaller-than-projected gain in January payrolls after a weather-depressed December, marking the weakest back-to-back advance in three years. Faster hiring would help spur the wage growth needed to boost the consumer spending that accounts for almost 70 percent of the economy.
“I’m skeptical of the ramp-up that everyone is expecting this year,” Stephen Stanley, chief economist at Pierpont Securities LLC in Stamford, Connecticut, said before the report. “There doesn’t appear to be any acceleration in employment growth.”
Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-02-11/job-openings-in-u-s-decrease-in-december-as-hiring-slows.html
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