> US employment trends index 110.35 vs 110.68 prior
Employment trends data from The Conference Board
Prior was 110.37 (revised to 110.68)
2 of 8 components lower
This is a composite index of jobs data that's already out there but it highlights some of the challenges around job losses. The release also highlights terminations due to vaccine mandates as a headwind.
"The Employment Trends Index has flattened since July, suggesting it may be a few months before the pace of job growth regains the momentum of earlier this year," said Gad Levanon, Head of The Conference Board Labor Markets Institute. "The chief culprit behind lagging job growth has been the summer surge in COVID-19 infections associated with the Delta variant. Spending on-and hiring in- in-person services significantly slowed in recent months. With new cases now trending downward, the risk of infection seems poised to decline over the rest of the year but remain significant. Thus, we expect more risk-averse consumers to continue to spend less on in-person services than they did pre-pandemic."