The US private sector added 140,000 jobs in February, indicating a modest uptick in the labor market ahead of job openings numbers later this morning and the official non-farm payrolls report on Friday.
Job gains in February exceeded the 111,000 in January but fell below the 150,000 expected by economists polled by LSEG.
Wage growth for those who remained in their jobs continued to slow, falling to an annual increase of 5.1 percent, the smallest increase since August. This is likely to be an encouraging sign for policymakers trying to tame inflation.
“Job gains remain strong. Wage gains are trending downward but still higher than inflation,” said Nella Richardson, chief economist at ADP.
Wage growth for job changers accelerated for the first time in a year to an annual rate of 7.6 percent in February.
