US job openings and 'quits' little changed in January

The number of job openings in the US slipped at the start of 2022 as did the number of people voluntarily quitting their jobs.

According to the US Department of Labor, in seasonally adjusted terms, the number of job openings slipped from 11.49m in December to 11.26m for January.

That pushed the rate of job openings, which is measured as a proportion of total employment, down by one tenth of a percentage point, from 7.1% to 7.0%.

In parallel, the number of voluntary separations, or so-called 'quits', drifted lower, from 4.51m to 4.40m, so that the quits rate decreased from 3.0% to 2.8%.

The quits rate is considered to be a good indicator of jobseekers' confidence in finding a new employer and therefore of the strength of the labour market.

Hiring on the other hand edged up, from 6.45m to 6.46m, despite which the rate of hiring slipped by two tenths of a percentage point to 4.3%.