Additional Coverage:
Private Sector Sees Modest Job Gains in December, Below Expectations
(Anytown, USA) – The private sector experienced a rise in employment during December, though the increase fell short of economists’ predictions, according to a report released Wednesday by ADP.
A total of 41,000 jobs were added last month, a welcome reversal after November’s loss of 29,000 positions. This marks a cautious glimmer of hope for a market that faced challenges towards the end of the year, following three consecutive months of payroll declines prior to ADP’s December findings.
The uptick, however, was less than the Dow Jones estimate of 48,000 new jobs.
Nela Richardson, ADP’s chief economist, noted in a statement, “Small establishments recovered from November job losses with positive end-of-year hiring, even as large employers pulled back.”
Indeed, the majority of the job growth came from small businesses, those employing fewer than 500 individuals. Larger companies contributed a modest 2,000 new positions.
Within the services industries, significant gains were observed, with healthcare and education adding 39,000 jobs. Trade, transportation, and utilities saw an increase of 11,000, and financial services experienced a notable spike of 6,000.
Conversely, some sectors faced losses. Professional and business services shed 29,000 jobs, while information services saw a drop of 12,000. Manufacturing also lost 5,000 positions, contributing to an overall decline in goods-producing industries.
Looking ahead, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is slated to release its nonfarm payrolls report on Friday. This will be the first BLS report published on schedule since the government reopened in November. Economists, according to Dow Jones, anticipate 73,000 new jobs for December in the upcoming BLS report.