Where the Job Market Is Heading in 2024, in Six Charts

Employers slowed hiring and handed out smaller raises in recent months, signs of fading momentum in the job market that have some forecasters expecting unemployment to rise in 2024.

And that might be OK. The key for American workers and Federal Reserve policymakers is to have the labor market cool without collapsing. That would support household incomes while helping inflation drift lower, putting the economy on a glide path to a soft landing—as long as the slowdown isn’t too severe.