U.S. job openings declined in February, and hiring pace significantly slowed down.

Odaily Planet Daily reports: In the U.S., February job openings fell, and hiring slowed noticeably, indicating that labor demand had already been cooling before additional uncertainty was triggered by the Iran war. Data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on Tuesday showed that job openings fell from 7.24 million, revised upward from January, to 6.88 million. After job openings had rebounded at the start of the year, the simultaneous slowdown in hiring and vacancies suggests that, following a year of near-zero growth, companies are becoming more cautious about staffing. Looking ahead, a surge in oil prices driven by the war could raise operating costs for businesses and pose further resistance to additional hiring. The decline in job openings was mainly driven by pullbacks in accommodation and food services, healthcare and social assistance, and manufacturing. The hiring rate dropped to its lowest level since April 2020, while the layoff rate rose slightly. Despite large companies, including Meta and Oracle, moving forward with large-scale layoffs to redeploy resources to artificial intelligence investment, layoff levels across the overall economy remain relatively moderate. (Jin Shi)