JOLTS: Labor market coming into balance

Wells Fargo Research Team Wells Fargo

Summary

The October JOLTS report is supportive of the view that labor supply and demand have come into better balance. Job openings fell to 8.73 million at the end of the month, the lowest reading since March 2021. The ratio of openings to unemployed persons is 1.34, only a bit above the 1.2 ratio that prevailed before the pandemic. The quit rate is also in line with its pre-pandemic level in a sign that workers are no longer quitting their jobs at the same pace they were when the labor market was at its hottest. On balance, today's labor market data are consistent with a cooling labor market and decelerating wages, which bodes well for future progress in the Federal Reserve's fight to bring inflation back to its 2% target.

Download the Full Rreport!

Author

Wells Fargo Research Team

Wells Fargo

EUR/USD consolidates below 1.1700 as markets turn risk-averse

EUR/USD struggles to stage a rebound and trades near the lower limit of its weekly range below 1.1700 on Thursday. The US Dollar benefits from the cautious market stance and doesn't allow the pair to gain traction ahead of mid-tier data releases.

GBP/USD stays in red near 1.3450 on broad USD resilience

GBP/USD stays on the back foot after posting losses for two consecutive days and trades near 1.3450 on Thursday. The souring market mood amid simmering geopolitical tensions make it difficult for the pair to gain traction as focus shift to the the US labor market data.

Gold sticks to intraday losses below $4,450; seems vulnerable to slide further

Gold maintains its offered tone in the second half of the day and trades below $4,450 after posting daily losses on Wednesday. The downfall lacks any obvious fundamental catalyst and could be attributed to some follow-through profit-taking ahead of the release of the US Nonfarm Payrolls report on Friday.

Pi Network flashes bearish potential as selling pressure mounts

Pi Network trades above $0.2000 at press time on Thursday, following a nearly 2% decline the previous day. Centralized Exchanges have received 1.90 million PI tokens over the last 24 hours, suggesting risk-off sentiment among holders. The technical outlook for the PI token remains bearish, with a risk of a cross below the 20-day Exponential Moving Average.

2026 economic outlook: Clear skies but don’t unfasten your seatbelts yet

Most years fade into the background as soon as a new one starts. Not 2025: a year of epochal shifts, in which the macroeconomy was the dog that did not bark. What to expect in 2026? The shocks of 2025 will not be undone, but neither will they be repeated.