Washington: Job openings in the United States fell in November to their lowest level in more than a year, signalling weakening demand for labour amid growing economic uncertainty.

According to Qatar News Agency, data released on Wednesday by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics showed the number of available jobs declined by 303,000 to 7.146 million by the end of November 2025. That marked a drop from 7.4 million in October and the lowest level since mid-2024.

The fall reflected fewer vacancies in leisure and hospitality, healthcare and social assistance, as well as transportation and warehousing. Hiring also slowed, with the number of new appointments falling to its weakest level since mid-2024, while layoffs continued to ease.

The report showed layoffs declined to 1.7 million in November, the lowest level in six months, with notable reductions in food services, accommodation, healthcare and across local and federal government, excluding education.

The data point to a cooling labour market, even as job losses remain limited. In response to the slowdown, the US Federal Reserve cut interest rates at its final three meetings of 2025. However, with inflation still above the central bank's 2% target, policymakers are widely expected to keep rates unchanged at their next meeting while closely monitoring incoming employment data.