‘Shocking’ plunge in construction job openings as Fed rate hikes begin to sting

TThe number of jobs available in construction The Federal Reserve campaign’s January election failed to produce a collapsed market. to raise interest rates Industry is beginning to see a shift.

In January, the construction industry had just 248,000 open jobs. It is actually a decline of 240,000 jobs According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics data, the decline in construction jobs is 37.4% from one year ago. This plunge shows how construction jobs are disappearing as older projects are finished and not being replaced with newer ones. Meanwhile, soaring mortgage rates are leading to dramatic falls in home sales.

“Today’s construction job openings number was simply shocking,” Anirban Basu is chief economist at Associated Builders and Contractors.

“Yesterday’s commentary by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell suggests that interest rates are set to go higher and stay elevated for longer than many had previously thought, which means that it may be a long time before construction job openings return to their previous highs,” Basu added.

WHY CONSTRUCTION JOBS ARE UP DESPITE HOUSING ‘RECESSION’—AND WHY IT WON’T LAST

These declines are due to the central bank’s attempts to reduce inflation by raising rates. This has caused mortgage rates and housing to soar, which the National Association of Home Builders described as “a downward spiral”. “housing recession.”

The number of existing and new homes sold has fallen rapidly over the past year due to a lack of demand. In addition, starts for new construction have dropped steeply. The construction sector has remained strong despite recent declines.

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