Tech companies from Microsoft Corp and
Google-parent Alphabet Inc to PayPal Holdings have cut thousands of jobs this year in an effort to curb
spending and protect margins amid an uncertain economic outlook.
"The layoffs that many of these companies are announcing are
welcome to investors, sort of right-sizing the cost structure,
rationalizing growth is being rewarded in the marketplace," said
James Tierney, chief investment officer at asset management firm
Alliance Bernstein.
Shares of Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon.com Inc and
Meta Platforms Inc have gained between 6% and 54% so
far this year, after falling between 29% and 64% in 2022.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Wednesday reaffirmed
his message of higher and potentially faster interest rate
hikes, which could force companies to slash more jobs.
U.S. firms announced plans to hire 28,830 workers in
February, down 87% from 215,127 a year earlier, the report
added.
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Layoffs in Jan, Feb highest since 2009 Tech sector dominates layoffs in Jan, Feb ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika
Syamnath)
(Adds details on unemployment benefits claims)
By Akash Sriram
March 9 (Reuters) - Layoffs by U.S. companies over
January and February touched the highest since 2009, with the
tech sector accounting for more than a third of the over 180,000
job cuts announced, a report showed on Thursday.
In February alone, layoffs in the United States stood at
77,770, more than five times higher than the 15,245 job cuts
announced a year earlier, according to the report from
employment firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc.
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment
benefits rose 21,000 in the week ended March 4, the Labor
Department said - the biggest increase in five months.
"Right now, the overwhelming bulk of cuts are occurring in
Technology. Retail and Financial are also cutting right now, as
consumer spending matches economic conditions," said Andrew
Challenger, senior vice president of Challenger, Gray &
Christmas Inc.
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