US JOLTS Job Openings decline to 7.14 million in November vs. 7.6 million expected

The number of job openings on the last business day of November stood at 7.146 million, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported in the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) on Wednesday. This reading followed the 7.449 million openings recorded in October (revised from 7.67 million) and came in below the market expectation of 7.6 million.

"Over the month, hires were little changed and total separations were unchanged at 5.1 million each. Within separations, both quits (3.2 million) and layoffs and discharges (1.7 million) were little changed," the BLS noted in its press release.

Market reaction

This report failed to trigger a significant market reaction. At the time of press, the US Dollar Index was virtually unchanged on the day at 98.60.