US Labor Market Showing Cracks: A Closer Look at Layoffs and Hiring Trends

US labor market data is currently unavailable due to the government shutdown. Private sector layoffs announced by UPS, Amazon, Target, and American Airlines, along with outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.'s report of 153,074 layoffs in October, have raised concerns about the labor market. However, previous instances of high layoffs have been followed by continued hiring, and the figure is skewed upward by government job cuts. Consumer sentiment is also low, with 71% of households expecting unemployment to rise over the next 12 months.