WASHINGTON — Available positions throughout the United States climbed to nearly 7 million during January, surpassing economist predictions at a time when employment growth has appeared sluggish.
The Labor Department announced Friday that job postings reached 6.95 million in January, marking an increase from December’s 6.55 million openings. This figure exceeded what economic analysts had predicted.
Workforce reductions decreased slightly while the count of Americans leaving their positions voluntarily — an indicator of worker optimism about future opportunities — dropped modestly.
During the employment surge that came after coronavirus pandemic restrictions, available positions reached an all-time high of 12.3 million in March 2022.
The nation’s employment sector is struggling. During the previous month, companies eliminated 92,000 positions. Throughout 2025, monthly job additions remained below 10,000, representing the weakest employment growth outside of recession periods since 2002.
The country’s economy has shown resilience despite President Donald Trump’s tariff policies and deportation efforts. However, the Commerce Department announced Friday that economic expansion decelerated dramatically during 2025’s final quarter — dropping to 0.7%, which represents half of the initial fourth-quarter growth projection and a decline from the robust 4.4% increase recorded in the third quarter.
The conflict in Iran has additionally generated significant uncertainty regarding future economic conditions.
