August Job Cuts Fall 17%

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Challenger, Gray & Christmas' latest jobs report said August job cuts were down 17% to 34,768 from the 41,676 cuts announced in July. The August figure is the lowest monthly total in over a decade.

"This marks the first decline following three consecutive months of increases," the report from the consultancy firm said.

Job cuts last month were 55% below the 76,456 planned cuts the same time last year, the report says. Furthermore, so far in 2010, monthly totals are, on average, 62% lower than the year-ago figure.

Overall, the 374,121 job cuts through August are down 65% from the 1,070,504 layoffs announced a year ago, the report said.

-- Written by Andrea Tse in New York.

>To contact the writer of this article, click here: Andrea Tse.

>To follow the writer on Twitter, go to Andrea Tse.

>To submit a news tip, send an email to: [e-mail].

Get more stock ideas and investing advice on our sister site, Stockpickr.com.

Follow TheStreet.com on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

Follow Andrea Tse on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

>To order reprints of this article, click here: Reprints