Stock market today: Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq push higher after sell-off ADP jobs report returns to growth
Private employers added 42,000 jobs to the US economy in October, according to ADP’s private payrolls report, rebounding from an upwardly revised loss of 29,000 jobs in September.
Forecasters were expecting the economy to add 30,000 jobs during the month, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence.
“Private employers added jobs in October for the first time since July, but hiring was modest relative to what we reported earlier this year,” said ADP chief economist Nela Richardson. “Meanwhile, pay growth has been largely flat for more than a year, indicating that shifts in supply and demand are balanced.”
Job growth was led by gains in the trade/transportation/utilities sector (+47,000) and the education/health services sector (+26,000). The biggest job losses were seen in information services (-17,000), professional/business services (-15,000), and other services.
Wages rose 4.5% year over year, unchanged from the month before.
ADP’s private payroll report is likely to get more attention than usual as the government shutdown — which officially became the longest federal shutdown in US history on Wednesday — has created a data vacuum. The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ monthly jobs report, for instance, continues to be delayed during the stoppage.