Payroll growth at private companies turned slightly stronger than expected in October, providing some hope that the labor market isn’t in danger of sinking, ADP reported Wednesday.
Companies added 42,000 jobs for the month, following a decline of 29,000 in September and topping the Dow Jones consensus estimate for a gain of 22,000. A revision for September showed 3,000 fewer jobs lost, the payrolls processing firm said.
A gain of 47,000 in the trade, transportation and utilities grouping helped offset losses in multiple other categories. Education and health services also showed growth of 26,000 while financial activities added 11,000.
Despite the artificial intelligence-fueled tech boom, information services saw a decline of 17,000 positions. Other sectors posting losses included professional and business services (-15,000), other services (-13,000) and manufacturing (-3,000), a sector that continues to struggle despite President Donald Trump’s tariffs aimed at bringing factory jobs back to the U.S.
All of the job creation came from companies employing at least 250 workers. That category added 76,000 jobs, while smaller businesses lost 34,000. The trend away from job growth at at small businesses is significant, considering they are responsible for three of every four jobs, ADP chief economist Nela Richardson said.
