US private sector adds fewer jobs than expected in October

Private sector employment in the US rose less than expected in October, according to data released by ADP on Wednesday.

Employers added 147,000 jobs last month, missing expectations for a 165,000 increase. Meanwhile, the September figure was revised up to show 202,000 jobs were added, compared to a previous estimate of 154,000.

Small businesses with fewer than 50 employees added 34,000 employees, while medium-sized businesses with between 50 and 499 employees added 48,000 jobs. Large companies with 500 or more employees added 64,000 jobs in October.

The services sector added 165,000 jobs, while the goods-producing sector lost 18,000 jobs.

Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, said: “Job growth remains strong although the pace of growth appears to be slowing. Behind the slowdown is businesses’ difficulty filling open positions. However, there is some weakness in construction, education and mining.”

Capital Economics said: "In isolation, the weaker than expected ADP figure suggests there is some downside risk to our forecast of a 190,000 increase in non-farm payroll employment, due out this Friday. But given the latest evidence of an improvement in the activity surveys, particularly the employment index in the ISM manufacturing index, we’re happy to stick with our existing estimate."