-Jerome Powell, Federal Reserve Governor
Job openings surged more than expected in December, with the headline figure reaching the highest level in 14 years. The monthly JOLTS data is a favourite of Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen and the strong reading could trigger a relatively hawkish assessment of the labour force. The US labour market created 5.028 million jobs at the end of December, compared with a revised 4.847 million seen in the previous month. That is the highest level since January 2001. The quits rate, a measure of the number of people, who leave their current employer and often considered as an indicator of optimism of available jobs, remained unchanged at 1.9%. The data echoed last week's monthly jobs report, which showed that businesses continued adding jobs at a solid pace. Employers added 257,000 jobs in January, and wages rose at the fastest one-month pace in six years.
Federal Reserve Governor Jerome Powell said that the US unemployment rate underestimates labour market slack, adding that job creation has been robust, and looks set to continue on a sustainable path. Powell said the current 5.7% rate of unemployment did not accurately reflect the numbers of discouraged workers and others who may be willing to re-join the labour force should market conditions improve. Powell added that the natural unemployment rate may now be as low as 5% or less.
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