Wall Street veteran David Stryzewski tells TheStreet that the US economy is not out of the woods yet. | The street

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics relies on the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) to clarify the broader picture of US job openings – including how many jobs are available each month, how many workers have lost their jobs, and more and how many workers were hired employment data points.

Now, the latest JOLTS data suggests the situation in the US economy is “rather the same” with job vacancies falling to 8.8 million while expectations are around 9.4 million.

“As the data comes in, we’re just beginning to find out that it’s getting tighter,” says David Stryzewski, founder of the Sound Planning Group based in Kirkland, Wash., in an Aug. 29 interview with TheStreet.com.

“Historically, unemployment is the final market cycle that occurs in times of economic contraction, and it is typical for the economy to bottom out in unemployment after a recession,” Stryzewski noted. “But we’re not even officially in a recession, so it’s not correct to say that unemployment should be in a reduced form here, because it’s not there yet, it’s not there yet,” he said.

Another criticism in the US stimulus plan is that Fed Chair Jerome Powell is likely to become more “tight” on US economic policy due to the JOLTS instability.

“(The federal government) had to revise the employment numbers down by 44,200 – they missed that much,” Stryzewski said. “So there were fewer jobs than they actually reported.”

Meanwhile, US companies are in a waiting pattern of retaining their employees longer and hiring fewer new applicants, leading to “natural turnover” in the US market. Right now, “profit margins are getting tighter, especially given the high cost of capital,” Stryzewski noted.

The final result? More rate hikes to fight inflation and more pressure on the bond market as corporate debt rises as companies are forced to borrow cash at higher costs.

“Bonds face a lot of challenges in the coming days as we are currently exposed to so many different headwind risks,” says Stryzewski. “The Fed will have to raise interest rates several more times and inflation will soon pick up.”

This is not good news for consumers weary of inflation. In Washington state, where Stryzewski lives, consumers can expect some of the highest gas prices in the country.

“I recently paid $5.19 for regular gas and you have to wonder how the average family is doing when unemployment is rising and wage inflation is very real,” he added. “That’s why I think there will be a fresh start in the labor market and in the economy as a whole.”