Seems like every company is hiring these days. In February, the U.S. unemployment rate fell to a 17-year low of 4%.
Firms still hiring lots of workers nearly nine years into expansion
The numbers: The number of job openings in the U.S. surged to a record 6.3 million in January, showing that businesses are still eager to hire nearly nine years into an economic expansion that still appears to have plenty of momentum.
About 5.6 million people were hired and 5.4 million lost their jobs in January, the Labor Department reported Friday.
The share of people who left jobs on their own, known as the quits rate, was unchanged at 2.5% among private-sector employees. That number has barely budged in the past year but it’s at a postrecession high, evidence that more workers feel secure enough to leave one job for another. Typically workers who move end up getting better pay.
What happened: White-collar and professional firms posted the most job openings. Delivery services and utilities were also looking to fill a lot of jobs, with many veteran employees planning to retire in the next few years.
The big picture: Companies are still lots of people despite the lowest unemployment rate in 17 years and growing complaints about a shortage of skilled labor. The U.S. in February added a whopping 313,000 new jobs to push the unemployment rate down to 4%.
The jobs market is so strong that some Americans receiving disability benefits have rejoined the workforce and companies are even hiring and training people with criminal records.
All of this is helping to keep the U.S. economy expanding nearly nine years after the last recession. The expansion could set a record in mid-2019 if it keeps on its current trajectory.
Market reaction: The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +1.74% and S&P 500 indexSPX, +1.38% both rose in Friday trades. Treasury yields TMUBMUSD10Y, +0.62% rose slightly.
By JEFFRY BARTASH
