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The number of openings for manufacturing jobs fell in October, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. NAM Chief Economist Chad Moutray walked us through the news.

The topline: “The October report recorded 746,000 manufacturing job openings, down from 835,000 in September and the lowest since December 2021,” said Moutray.

• “Durable goods job openings increased in October, but postings at nondurable goods firms were sharply lower,” said Moutray. “Over the past 12 months, job openings in the sector have averaged more than 841,000, remaining well above pre-pandemic levels.” 

The big picture: “In the larger economy, nonfarm business job openings cooled from 10,687,000 in September to 10,334,000 in October,” said Moutray.

• “Meanwhile, there were 6,059,000 unemployed Americans in October, which translated into 58.6 unemployed workers for every 100 job openings in the U.S. economy. As such, there continues to be more job openings than people actively looking for work.”

Quits rise: “Total quits in the manufacturing sector totaled 268,000 in October, up from 250,000 but easing since peaking at a record 362,000 in March,” said Moutray.

• “While overall quits in the sector have cooled, there continued to be an elevated level of labor market churn.”
• “At the same time, total quits in the overall economy declined from 4,060,000 to 4,026,000 but remained well above the pace seen before the pandemic.”