US jobs openings at lowest levels in over 2 years

Data was released yesterday revealing that US job openings were at their lowest levels in over two years. This indicates that the jobs market is catching up with the current slowing in the economy and that there is a stagnation in hiring. Whilst this isn’t great for those looking for jobs, markets responded positively to these announcements, as it will likely mean inflationary pressures from jobs continuously being created is finally cooling off. This also means that the Fed may further consider a pause on interest rate hikes at their next meeting. 

Ørsted shares take a nosedive

Danish company, Ørsted, saw shares plummet over 18% yesterday after announcing US impairments worth millions. These costs are due to supply chain issues and rising inflation, among other issues. The stock price fell to its lowest level in over four years and has done little to reignite downbeat investors. In turn, the US side of the business looks like it could have a bumpy period ahead.

Toyota halts operations

Toyota announced yesterday that it had paused operations in all 14 of its production plants across Japan. They said in a statement that it was due to a production system malfunction, with a cyberattack being quickly ruled out as a potential. Toyota is responsible for nearly 50% of Japan’s car output, yet the excitement of investors around the region and in the company this year refused to be dented by this glitch. Shares slid a mere 0.8%, suggesting that the faith investors have in their resilience is still firmly intact. 

Sources: Financial Times, Reuters, Bloomberg, Nasdaq