To see what an economic soft landing looks like, search no further than business hiring. Parts of the economy are cooling, just as the Federal Reserve would like to see to combat inflation. Yet the key to a measured, inflation-busting slowdown that doesn’t sink the economy lies in whether companies hold on to workers or lay them off. And the answer, in an economy that otherwise can send repeated mixed signals, is clear: They are making a priority of keeping workers. So the economy appears to be steadily cooling, while averting the long-anticipated recession.

Source: Wall Street Journal July 29, 2023 23:17 UTC