WASHINGTON – Companies in the United States added more workers in February than expected, underscoring continued strengthening in the labor market, according to data released Wednesday from the ADP Research Institute.
Private payrolls increased by 235,000 after an upwardly revised 244,000 increase in January. Payrolls in goods-producing industries, which include builders and manufacturers, rose 37,000. Service providers added 198,000 workers to payrolls.
Key takeaways
The results show a continued trend of robust hiring as companies hunt for employees to fill empty spots. The gains point to sustained consumer spending, which accounts for about 70 percent of the economy. Every single sector except information gained jobs in the period.
The report is based on ADP’s payroll data, representing about 411,000 firms employing almost 24 million workers in the U.S. The ADP reading compares with the median estimate of economists for 198,000 private-sector job gains in February, ahead of the Labor Department’s monthly figures due Friday. The unemployment rate probably fell to 4 percent from 4.1 percent in the prior month, according to analyst forecasts.
Economist’s view
“The job market is red hot and threatens to overheat,” Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Analytics Inc. in West Chester, Pa., said in the statement. Moody’s produces the figures with ADP. “With government spending increases and tax cuts, growth is set to accelerate.”
Other details
Construction payrolls increased 21,000, while professional and business services added 46,000 workers, and leisure and hospitality took on 50,000 employees.
Large firms, those employing 500 or more workers, increased staffing by 70,000 jobs. Payrolls rose by 97,000 at medium-sized businesses, or those with 50 to 499 employees. And small companies added 68,000 jobs.
Katia Dmitrieva is a Bloomberg News staff writer.
