03:26 PM EDT, 04/29/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US job openings and layoffs fell in March, government data showed Tuesday, ahead of a key employment report that will offer fresh details around the state of the labor market.

Vacancies decreased to 7.19 million as of the last day of March from February's downwardly revised 7.48 million print, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' job openings and labor turnover survey. The consensus was for a level of 7.5 million in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

The latest print marks the lowest level since September, Stifel said in a note to clients.

Job separations, which include quits and layoffs, fell to 5.14 million from 5.32 million month to month. Layoffs and discharges dropped to 1.56 million from 1.78 million, led by a 79,000 fall in leisure and hospitality, according to the survey. Quits increased by 82,000 sequentially to 3.33 million in March, also led by leisure and hospitality.

Official data are expected to show Friday that the US economy added 129,000 nonfarm jobs in April, which would mark a drop from a 228,000 increase reported for last month, according to a Bloomberg poll.

Earlier this month, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the labor market "appears to be in solid condition and broadly in balance."

The Fed's latest Beige Book released last week showed that firms in several districts were taking "a wait-and-see approach to employment" amid economic uncertainty. "There were scattered reports of firms preparing for layoffs," according to that report.

Total private job openings declined to 6.36 million in March from 6.59 million the month prior, according to BLS data. Vacancies fell by 62,000 in trade, transportation, and utilities and by 61,000 in private education and health services.

Earlier in April, US President Donald Trump announced sweeping new tariffs on imports, including from China. Trump later declared a 90-day pause on certain duties for non-retaliating countries, though Washington and Beijing have been in a deadlock over tariffs.