A surprisingly resilient (but cooling) global job market

For the global job market, 2026 has been a year of steady improvement, according to high-frequency alternative datasets that track how many companies are hiring.

(This outcome might have been surprising from the perspective of 2025, when US tariffs shook the assumptions underlying global trade and growth prospects.)

LinkUp tracks job openings in more than 200 countries. Its data (a leading proxy for official employment figures) show that emerging markets cut back job postings strongly in 2025, but then returned to growth mode.

Trends in June suggest that the broad hiring upturn is cooling off. Japan and Germany, notably, saw outright contraction.