This post was originally published on this site
The numbers: Private payrolls rose by 807,000 in December, according to the ADP National Employment Report released Wednesday. That’s the strongest gain since May.
Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had forecast a gain of 375,000 private sector jobs in December. The ADP report is produced with Moody’s Analytics.
Key details: By company size, large businesses added 389,000 private-sector jobs in December while small businesses added 204,000. Medium-sized businesses, defined as firms with 50 to 499 employees, added 214,000 jobs.
Service sector providers added 669,000 jobs in December. Leisure and hospitality added 246,000 workers. Meanwhile, goods producers added 138,000 jobs, the strongest gain of the year. Manufacturing added 74,000 jobs.
Big picture: ADP said that the impact of the omicron variant on the labor market “has yet to be seen. “
Wall Street traders use the ADP report to get an early read on the Labor Department’s report on private payrolls. But the ADP data has often not been an accurate predictor.
Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal forecast a total payroll gain of 432,000 jobs in December and that the unemployment rate will slip to 4.1% from 4.2%. The government’s data will be released Friday at 8:30 a.m. Eastern.
Market reaction: Stocks
DJIA,
SPX,
were expected to open lower on concerns about higher interest rates.
