There Are More Job Openings Than Job Seekers For First Time In Recorded History: US Board of Labor Statistics

Two years ago during the 2016 campaign for the American presidency, then-President Barack Obama criticised then-candidate Donald Trump over his economic plan for the nation, The Hill reports. In a town hall style meeting put together by PBS, Obama waved away any suggestion that Donald Trump might be a credible steward of the U.S. economy, flatly stating that manufacturing jobs were not returning and that the negotiations promised by Trump would be fruitless.

Former President Obama may wish he’d never made the memorable quip of “what magic wand does he [Donald Trump] have?” if economic conditions continue as they have been, according to breakdown of the Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers by the Albany Herald.

Today’s economic news is staggeringly positive and literally historic. For the first time in recorded history for the United States of America, the number of job openings posted exceeds that of the number of citizens actively seeking employment. The BLS reports that for the month of April, 6.7 million job postings were available to be filled by applicants, while there were only 6.3 million job seekers on the market. While it should be clear that this does not mean that the precise opportunities looking to be filled are able to be filled by the applicants looking as the skillset or geographical location may not match, it does mean that – concretely and unambigiously – the outlook is very good for job-seekers.

U.S. Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta stirred these sentiments in a statement made earlier today. “Never before have we had an economy where the number of open jobs exceeds the number of job-seekers… This administration is committed to ensuring that all Americans have the necessary skills to access good, family-sustaining jobs. With the lowest unemployment rate in over 18 years and 3.4 million jobs created since President Trump’s election, this is a great time to be a job-seeker in the United States.”

Other indicators recently released are also encouraging. The unemployment rate for African-Americans, Asian-Americans, and Hispanic Americans has reached record lows, showing strength in employment indicators sustained over time. Last month, unemployment numbers overall for both men (3.5 percent) and women (3.3 percent) reached their lowest levels in nearly 20 years, pairing the rate set in 2000.

Both the Dow and NASDAQ markets are also seeing historic highs, with the DOW Jones Industrial Average coming in at 19,827.25 at the moment of Trump’s inauguration, now weighing in at a very hefty 24,799.80 as of the time of this writing. The NASDAQ closed at an all-time high today, hitting 7,637.86. When the current president was sworn into office, the NASDAQ closed at 5,555.33. Expert economists and laymen alike can see the massive rally both markets have made under President Trump, likely attributed to his business-oriented policy choices including sweeping tax cuts and encouragement of the repatriation of offshore assets. President Trump took to Twitter today to trumpet the numbers to his 52.5 million followers.

The U.S. has an increased economic value of more than 7 Trillion Dollars since the Election. May be the best economy in the history of our country. Record Jobs numbers. Nice!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 5, 2018

While President Trump may not have a magic wand or any supernatural ability beyond an intangible business acumen, it appears that he has been a boon to America’s economic future – at least so far. Only at a time far removed from the years he will serve will more objective observers pause to reflect upon his tenure.

For now all economic signs point to sunny days and fiscal strength for most this American summer.