There were 4.6 million more job openings than unemployed workers in December

Job openings totaled nearly 11 million in December while the Great Resignation cooled off, according to Labor Department data Tuesday.

Reflecting a tightening labor market, vacancies rose to 10.92 million, well above the FactSet estimate for 10.28 million and an increase of 1.4% from November. The rate of job openings as a share of the labor force was unchanged at 6.8%.

The quits level, which had soared to record highs in recent months amid a confluence of factors, moved lower to 4.34 million, a decrease of 3.6%. The quits rate fell to 2.9%, a decrease of 0.1 percentage point.

The JOLTS report is considered a particularly important gauge when measuring labor market slack.

December’s numbers further pointed to how close the economy is to full employment. There were 4.6 million more vacancies than workers considered unemployed for the month.

In other economic news Tuesday, the ISM Manufacturing survey for January came in at 57.6%, a decline of 1.2 percentage points from December but slightly ahead of the 57.4% Dow Jones estimate. The number represents the share of businesses reporting expansion for the month.

Federal Reserve officials are watching the latest data closely as they prepare to embark on their first tightening cycle since 2018.

Policymakers say they feel the economy is close to fulfilling the Fed’s dual mandate of full employment, and has exceeded the 2% inflation benchmark for the central bank.

Indeed, the ISM index reflected inflation pressures in the pipeline, as the Prices Index hit 76.1%, up 7.9 percentage points from December.