Could JOLTS Data Alter Fed’s Recent Rate Path?

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Opportunities and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) recorded 7.744 million job opportunities for October, and this does not go without economic ramifications. While there has been a lot of noise around the trend, there are not truly substantial cracks in the US economy, therefore, economists and analysts do not anticipate that the jobs data would dramatically affect the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy trajectory or its strategy for renormalization of rates.

Growth is relatively still decent. Markets do need to pay attention to jobs and the consumer at the end of the day, but they are looking more along the trend, and that’s exactly what the Fed’s going to be looking at as well.

Regarding the outlook on potential Fed rate cuts, observers believes a 25 basis point cut is likely in December. However, some economists emphasize that the rate cut path for 2025 will largely depend on how the economy is impacted over the long-term, given the first 100 days of the new administration.