According to ADP, private payrolls rose faster than expected in April, suggesting there are still plenty of tailwinds for the U.S. labor market.
A separate report noted that job vacancies continue to decline, falling to their lowest level since the start of 2021.
The payroll company reported Wednesday that companies added 192,000 workers this month, better than the Dow Jones consensus forecast of 183,000, although down slightly from the upwardly revised 208,000 in March.
At the same time, the company’s wage measure showed that workers’ wages rose 5% from a year ago, a multi-year low that provided welcome news, while numerous other signs suggested that inflation has proven more resilient than many economists and political decision-makers expected.
“There was a wide range of hiring in April,” said ADP chief economist Nela Richardson. “Only the information sector – telecommunications, media and information technology – showed weakness, recording job losses and the lowest wage increases since August 2021.”
Employment growth was strongest in leisure and hospitality, which saw an increase of 56,000. Other sectors with increases included construction (35,000) and the trade, transport and utilities as well as education and healthcare sectors, which each recorded an increase of 26,000.
Professional and business services contributed 22,000 to the total, while financial activities added 16,000.
Companies with 500 or more workers saw the largest hiring increase at 98,000.
Separately, the Labor Department reported Wednesday that job openings fell again in March, falling to a seasonally adjusted 8.49 million, the lowest level since February 2021.
The job vacancies and workforce turnover survey showed that job postings fell by more than 1.1 million compared to last year, with 1.3 open positions for available workers. The share of job vacancies in the total workforce fell to 5.1%, a decrease of 0.2 percentage points.
The report also indicated a decline in hiring, layoffs and terminations.
The releases come two days ahead of the more closely watched nonfarm payrolls report. In recent months, the ADP has consistently lagged behind the Labor Department numbers, although the March numbers were fairly close. The department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that private payrolls increased by 232,000 this month, compared with 208,000 for ADP.
According to the Dow Jones consensus estimate in Friday’s report, total nonfarm payrolls are expected to rise by 240,000 in April, down from 303,000 in March.
Correction: Total nonfarm payrolls are expected to grow by 240,000 in April, according to the Dow Jones consensus estimate in Friday’s report. The number was incorrect in an earlier version.
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2024-05-01 14:27:47
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