Another week, another announcement of massive layoffs. And as the job cuts keep piling up, workers are feeling increasingly anxious about the employment market. Especially since hiring is down, too.

The Associated Press reports that economists say that businesses are largely at a “no-hire, no fire” standstill, leading many to limit new work, if not pause openings entirely amid economic uncertainty. Hiring has stagnated overall—with the country adding a meager 50,000 jobs last month, down from a revised figure of 56,000 in November.

But a growing list of companies are also cutting jobs. Employers have initiated layoffs across sectors—with many pointing to rising operational costs that span from President Donald Trump’s barrage of new tariffs, stubborn inflation and shifts in spending from consumers, whose outlook on the U.S. economy recently plummeted to its lowest level since 2014. At the same time, some businesses are reducing their workforces as they redirect money to artificial intelligence, often baked into wider corporate restructuring.

On Wednesday morning, about 16,000 corporate employees at Amazon—the country’s second-largest private employer— learned they will lose their jobs. It was the company’s largest layoff, yet, part of ongoing cuts first announced this fall. The news rippled through the economy this week. Soon after, UPS said that it would be slashing 30,000 delivery jobs this year in part because of Amazon sending it less business.

Tech workers say that as layoffs by big firms have dragged on, hiring in the industry has lagged. In Silicon Valley, that slowdown has sharpened the contrast between the rank-and-file software engineers who are struggling and the AI stars being poached for astronomical sums.

Beyond the private sector, thousands of federal government employees lost their jobs in cuts taken by the Trump administration last year—forcing many to look for new work. That’s further strained workers’ overall sentiment about finding stable employment today.

This is getting more intense than anyone wants. President Donald Trump sharply intensified his threats against Iran on Wednesday. “A massive armada is heading to Iran,” he warned, suggesting that if it did not agree to a set of demands the administration had made of the country’s leaders, he could soon mount an attack “with speed and violence.”

Two weeks ago the president promised Iranian protesters that help was coming, only to back down. Since then the scale of the bloodshed inflicted by Iran’s regime has become clearer. HRANA, a human-rights monitor in Washington, has confirmed 6,221 deaths. The real toll may be as high as 30,000, according to opposition sources.

Meanwhile, Trump has ordered a U.S. military buildup in the Gulf ahead of a possible strike. He told Axios on Monday that the armada was bigger than the one he sent to Venezuela. Iran, Israel and other countries in the region have been on high alert for days expecting a U.S. strike. However, White House officials say Trump still hasn’t made a final decision and is still willing to explore a diplomatic solution. Already, Saudi Arabia and UAE said publicly that they won’t allow the U.S. to use their airspace for strikes against Iran.

Remember when there was nothing more interesting, automotively speaking, than Tesla? Well, things aren’t going so well for the once-beloved car manufacturer. The brand’s profit dropped 46% year over year, Tesla revealed in its earnings update Wednesday evening.

That was not exactly a surprise—in fact, it was better than most analysts had expected. Tesla had already reported sales for the quarter, which showed the continuation of a slump that stretched through much of the year. It’s clear that Tesla has lost the crown as the undisputed global leader in electric vehicle sales. Not only has the brand reputation been soured, but competition—particularly from China—has grown more intense.

The company also announced that it’s discontinuing the Model S sedan and Model X crossover—luxury models that put the company on the map but which have become long in the tooth by vehicle standards. CEO Elon Musk is maneuvering the company to focus much of its time and capital on its AI ambitions, including self-driving cars and humanoid robots. “We’re really moving into a future that is based on autonomy,” Musk said, calling it “slightly sad.” That’s one way to put it.

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