The US private sector added 143,000 jobs in September, surpassing the 120,000 predicted by economists, according to the latest ADP National Employment Report.
This marked a rebound in job growth following a revised increase of 103,000 jobs in August. The report also revealed that wage growth slowed, particularly for workers who changed jobs.
ADP’s chief economist, Nela Richardson, noted that despite stronger hiring, wage growth did not accelerate. Pay increases for workers who switched jobs fell to 6.6% in September, down from 7.3% in August, while pay for job-stayers grew by 4.7%.
Most of the job gains came from the service-providing sector, which added 101,000 positions. Leisure and hospitality led the way with 34,000 new jobs, followed by education and health services (24,000) and professional and business services (20,000). However, the information sector lost 10,000 jobs.
In the goods-producing sector, construction companies added 26,000 jobs, while natural resources and mining gained 14,000 positions. Manufacturing added a modest 2,000 jobs. Large businesses with over 500 employees contributed the most to job growth, adding 86,000 positions, while small businesses with fewer than 50 employees lost 8,000 jobs.
Regionally, the South led the way with 61,000 new jobs, followed by the Northeast with 32,000 and the Midwest with 26,000. The West added 22,000 jobs, with the majority in the Pacific region.
The stronger-than-expected job growth comes amid signs of a cooling labor market and slower wage growth, which could alleviate inflationary pressures. The ADP report precedes the official Labor Department jobs report, which is expected to show 140,000 new hires in September and an unemployment rate holding steady at 4.2%.
While the labor market has slowed in recent months, Fed Chair Jerome Powell described it as “solid” but acknowledged the clear cooling over the past year.
With input from FOX Business, CNBC, Market Watch, and Bloomberg.
