U.S. Job Cuts Hit Nine-Year High in January
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: 3d ago
0mins
Should l Buy AMZN?
Source: Benzinga
- Surge in Layoffs: In January, U.S. employers announced 108,435 job cuts, a staggering 205% increase from December 2025, marking the worst start to a year since 2009, indicating a pessimistic outlook for the economy in 2026.
- Collapse in Hiring Plans: The hiring plans plummeted to just 5,306 positions, the lowest January level ever recorded, down 13% year-over-year and 49% from December, reflecting a cautious approach by companies amid economic uncertainty.
- AI's Impact on Job Cuts: In January alone, 7,624 layoffs were directly attributed to AI, accounting for 7% of all job cuts, with nearly 80,000 job losses linked to AI since 2023, highlighting the technology's profound impact on the labor market.
- Industry-Specific Layoffs: Dow Inc. triggered 4,701 layoffs, marking the worst month for chemicals since 2016, while Amazon cut 16,000 jobs, and healthcare firms announced 17,107 layoffs, illustrating the structural adjustments across various sectors due to rising costs and market pressures.
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Analyst Views on AMZN
Wall Street analysts forecast AMZN stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for AMZN is 294.69 USD with a low forecast of 250.00 USD and a high forecast of 340.00 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
47 Analyst Rating
46 Buy
1 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 222.690
Low
250.00
Averages
294.69
High
340.00
Current: 222.690
Low
250.00
Averages
294.69
High
340.00
About AMZN
Amazon.com, Inc. provides a range of products and services to customers. The products offered through its stores include merchandise and content it has purchased for resale and products offered by third-party sellers. The Company’s segments include North America, International and Amazon Web Services (AWS). It serves consumers through its online and physical stores and focuses on selection, price, and convenience. Customers access its offerings through its websites, mobile apps, Alexa, devices, streaming, and physically visiting its stores. It also manufactures and sells electronic devices, including Kindle, Fire tablet, Fire TV, Echo, Ring, Blink, and eero, and develops and produces media content. It serves developers and enterprises of all sizes, including start-ups, government agencies, and academic institutions, through AWS, which offers a set of on-demand technology services, including compute, storage, database, analytics, and machine learning, and other services.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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