Construction Job Openings Dropped From Peak Highs in May

The construction labor market appears to have hit its peak as economic activity slows across the U.S. in response to record inflation. The count of open construction jobs fell from 440,000 in April to 434,000 in May, while the job openings rate also dropped to 5.4% in May, NAHB Eye on Housing reports. Building activity remains strong post-pandemic, but is expected to slow as buyer demand softens over the coming months. Still, the construction industry is actively recruiting skilled laborers to add inventory to a largely undersupplied market.

The housing market remains underbuilt and requires additional labor, lots and lumber and building materials to add inventory. However, the market is now slowing due to higher interest rates yielding an expected slowing of the count of unfilled positions in the sector.

Hiring in the construction sector was little changed at a 4.7% rate in May. The post-virus peak rate of hiring occurred in May 2020 (10.4%) as a rebound took hold in home building and remodeling.

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