Job openings fell more than expected in July as the labor market adjusts to President Trump’s trade war and immigration crackdown.
The Labor Department’s JOLTS survey showed 7.2 million openings, down from 7.4 million in June and below forecasts of 7.3–7.5 million. For the first time since 2021, unemployed Americans now outnumber available jobs, with 7.24 million job seekers compared to 7.18 million openings.
“The July JOLTS report showed further signs of softening labor market conditions,” wrote Nancy Vanden Houten, lead U.S. economist at Oxford Economics. “The job openings-to-unemployed ratio fell below 1.0 for the first time since April 2021, signaling a loosening demand for workers.”
Private sector job openings fell for a second straight month, dropping to 6.4 million in July from 6.5 million in June. Declines included 181,000 in health care and social assistance, 62,000 in arts and entertainment, and 13,000 in mining and logging. New hires inched up to 5.3 million, while quits held at 3.2 million, and the quits rate stayed at 2.0%, as workers remain cautious amid labor market uncertainty.
The latest job openings report follows weak July employment data showing only 106,000 jobs added over three months, short of the 80,000–100,000 needed monthly to cover attrition. In response, President Trump fired the Labor Department’s chief statistician, calling the data “rigged.” And while job creation has decreased in recent months, the unemployment rate remains at a low 4.2 percent.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell called the slowdown “curious,” noting in a recent speech that both labor demand and supply have declined simultaneously.
“This unusual situation suggests that downside risks to employment are rising. And if those risks materialize, they can do so quickly in the form of sharply higher layoffs and rising unemployment,” said Powell.
