Job openings fall to 6.9 million in February, another hint of sluggish hiring in America

The hiring rate — the number of hires as a percentage of employment — dropped to 3.1%, also the lowest since April 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic that shut down economic activity. Christopher S. Rupkey, chief economist at the financial research firm fwdbonds, wrote in a commentary that the drop in openings "as the Iran war started is not a good omen for the health and vitality of the labor market. The U.S. job market has sputtered over the past year, reflecting the lingering impact of the high interest rates and uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s economic policies and the impact of artificial intelligence.