The Conference Board Employment Trends Index declined -0.37 pts MoM to 104.27 in December, indicating softer labor market sentiment and signals of slower payroll growth ahead.

• The Employment Trends Index fell to 104.27 in December from a downwardly revised 104.64 in November (-0.37 pts MoM), marking another decline in the composite leading indicator for payroll employment.

• The share of consumers reporting that jobs are “hard to get” rose to 20.8% in December, the highest level since early 2021, indicating weaker perceptions of job availability.

• The share of involuntary part-time workers increased to 19.4% in December, also the highest rate since early 2021, suggesting a rise in underemployment among part-time workers.

• The share of small firms reporting positions they are unable to fill held steady at 33%, remaining near the post-pandemic low reached in July and indicating reduced hiring difficulty relative to earlier periods.

• Initial unemployment insurance claims increased marginally in December following declines in October and November, showing a slight uptick in new filings after recent improvement.

• Job openings declined by -303,000 in November to the lowest level since 2020, indicating reduced labor demand in the most recent available data.

• Real manufacturing and trade sales and industrial production were largely steady toward the end of 2025, while surveys of manufacturing activity and employment across goods-producing sectors continued to show contraction.

• Six of the eight ETI components contributed negatively to the December reading, with only job openings contributing positively while the share of firms unable to fill positions was unchanged.