India, Feb. 9 -- U.S.-based employers announced 108,435 job cuts in January, marking a 118% increase from the 49,795 cuts reported in the same month last year, according to a report by outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas released Thursday.

The figure is also 205% higher than December 2025, when 35,553 job cuts were recorded, and represents the highest total for January since 2009, when 241,749 cuts were reported. It is also the largest monthly total since October 2025, which saw 153,074 layoffs.

"Generally, we see a high number of job cuts in the first quarter, but this is a high total for January. Most of these plans were likely set at the end of 2025, signaling that employers are less-than-optimistic about the 2026 outlook,...