U.S. Job Openings Slip Below Forecasts in Weak July Report/ Newslooks/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour/ Morning Edition/ U.S. job openings fell to 7.2 million in July, signaling continued cooling in the labor market. Healthcare, social assistance, and retail led declines, while layoffs ticked higher. Economists warn that hiring has slowed significantly under high interest rates and trade policy uncertainty.
U.S. Job Market Cooling Quick Looks
- Job openings slipped to 7.2 million in July, down from June’s 7.4 million.
- Declines led by healthcare (-181,000 openings) and retail (-110,000 openings).
- Layoffs rose slightly; quits remained unchanged at 3.2 million.
- Openings have fallen steadily since peaking at 12.1 million in March 2022.
- Federal Reserve rate hikes and Trump’s trade wars cited as key pressures.
- Job growth averaged 85,000 per month in 2025, well below prior years.
- Revisions cut 258,000 jobs from May and June totals.
- Trump fired the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics over weak data.
- Job openings now below unemployed count (7.24 million) for first time since 2021.
- August employment report expected to show 80,000 new jobs.
U.S. Job Openings Slip Below Forecasts in Weak July Report
Deep Look
WASHINGTON — The American labor market showed further signs of slowing in July as job openings fell to 7.2 million, according to new Labor Department data released Wednesday. That figure marked a decline from June’s 7.4 million openings and fell slightly short of economists’ expectations.
Healthcare and social assistance employers cut 181,000 vacancies, while retailers reduced their openings by 110,000, underscoring a broad cooling across key industries.
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) also found that layoffs edged up modestly, though still at historically low levels. Meanwhile, the number of Americans quitting their jobs — a measure of worker confidence — held steady at 3.2 million.
Steady Decline From Pandemic-Era Peak
Job openings remain higher than pre-pandemic averages but have fallen steadily since reaching a record 12.1 million in March 2022, when the U.S. economy was rebounding sharply from COVID-19 shutdowns.
So far in 2025, the labor market has slowed noticeably. Monthly job gains have averaged just 85,000, compared with 168,000 per month in 2024 and a robust 400,000 monthly average from 2021 to 2023.
Economists point to two major factors:
- The Federal Reserve’s 11 rate hikes between 2022 and 2023, which cooled business investment and hiring.
- Ongoing trade wars under President Donald Trump, which have created uncertainty and discouraged companies from expanding.
Jobs Report Ahead After Weak July
The Labor Department’s August employment report, due Friday, is expected to show a gain of around 80,000 jobs, according to FactSet forecasts. That would be slightly better than July’s disappointing 73,000 increase, but still well below the levels needed to indicate a strong labor market.
The July figures were further overshadowed by significant revisions, which cut 258,000 jobs from May and June payrolls. The adjustment drew a sharp reaction from Trump, who fired the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and nominated a loyal partisan figure to replace her.
Job Openings Now Lag Number of Unemployed
For the first time since April 2021, job openings fell below the number of unemployed Americans. July’s 7.2 million openings compared to 7.24 million unemployed workers, signaling tougher conditions for job seekers.
Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union, highlighted the shift: “This is yet another crack in the labor market that illustrates how much harder it is to get a new job right now than what we’ve seen in a long time.”
Employers Cautious but Not Cutting Deeply
Despite the slowdown, layoffs remain relatively modest. Employers appear reluctant to shed workers after years of hiring challenges, choosing instead to slow recruitment rather than risk future labor shortages.
This cautious approach suggests the labor market is cooling gradually rather than collapsing. Still, with hiring momentum weakening and unemployment edging higher, economists warn that the U.S. economy could struggle to sustain growth through the rest of 2025.
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