📍JOLTS March: The biggest hiring wave since COVID

📌 Job openings reached 6.866M - close to forecasts. February was revised upward from 6.882M to 6.922M. The job opening rate decreased from 4.2% to 4.1%.
📌 The most notable point is in hiring:
- The number of hires in March surged to 5.554M, an increase of +655K MoM. The hiring rate rose from 3.1% to 3.5%.
- This is the strongest increase since COVID. Excluding COVID factors, March 2026 is the month with the strongest hiring in JOLTS history.
📌 The sectors driving increased hiring include: Transportation: +108K, Professional services: +165K, Hotels & F&B: +124K, Federal government: -7K
📌 The number of layoffs reached 3.171M, up +125K MoM. The layoff rate increased to ~2.0%. People only dare to quit their jobs if they believe: They can find a better new job, with attractive wages/benefits outside.
📌 The job openings to unemployed ratio remains around 0.9x - 0.95x, with little change from February.
-> Job openings are steady, but increased hiring indicates companies are no longer opening positions en masse, yet they are still hiring. A clear sign that the labor market has stabilized after two poor quarters.
It is still unclear how the new Fed chair will comment on the labor data.