With an intensifying trade war with China, volatility in stock markets, and a yield curve that inverted months ago, all the signs are there that the economy is on rocky footing and heading towards a recession in the near future. But despite all those negative signs, many market analysts continue to point to the job market as a sign that the economy is still healthy. With job growth continuing and more job openings than job seekers, many economists think that’s a sign that the economy still has room to run. But that’s changing.
The latest numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) are a definite indicator that the economy is starting to cool. Job openings are down once again, although there are still more openings than workers looking for jobs. The number of hires was down too, and in another worrying sign the number of quits was also down quite a bit. If workers don’t feel confident leaving their jobs, it’s a sign that they think they won’t be able to get a better job elsewhere because the economy is weakening.
One month doesn’t make a trend, so it will definitely take some watching to see whether this poor performance continues throughout the rest of the year. But with tariffs on Chinese goods set to hit in December, that could affect Christmas shopping and, therefore, business activity. If business hiring doesn’t meet expectations for the Christmas season, or if hiring falls, that would be a particularly ominous sign for the economy’s health.
Many investors are viewing these job numbers with a certain amount of fear, and they realize that the coming economic slowdown could mean that their retirement assets are at risk of losing value. That’s why so many investors are moving into gold, as investing in gold is the only sure way of maintaining the security of their retirement assets during an economic downturn.
Investors who sought the safety of gold in 2008 saw their investments explode in value while stock markets plummeted. And that’s why they’re getting back into gold ahead of the next stock market crash. Don’t be one of those left behind: start investing in gold today.
This article was originally posted on Goldco.
