WASHINGTON, Feb 1(Reuters) - U.S. job openings
unexpectedly rose in December, showing demand for labor remains
strong despite higher interest rates and mounting fears of a
recession, potentially keeping the Federal Reserve on its policy
tightening path.
Job openings, a measure of labor demand, increased 572,000
to 11.0 million on the last day of December, the Labor
Department said in its monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover
Survey, or JOLTS report, on Wednesday. Economists polled by
Reuters had forecast 10.250 million job openings.
Federal Reserve officials were due to wrap up a two-day
policy meeting later on Wednesday. The U.S. central bank is
expected to raise its policy rate by 25 basis points. The Fed
last year raised its policy rate by 425 basis points from near
zero to a 4.25%-4.50% range, the highest since late 2007.
The Labor Department reported on Tuesday that wages and
salaries increased in the fourth quarter at their slowest pace
in a year.
(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci)
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