Private sector adds 122,000 jobs in July, below estimates
Private sector adds 122,000 jobs in July, below estimates

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Private-sector employment in the US rose by 122,000 jobs in July, according to the ADP National Employment Report released today. The trade/transportation/utilities sector helped fuel the growth by adding 61,000 jobs.
The increase was down from an upwardly revised 155,000 jobs added in June.
The report also found year-over-year pay gains for those staying in their jobs slowed to 4.8% in July, the slowest pace of growth since August 2021. Those changing jobs saw a big drop, with pay gains slowing to 7.2% from 7.7%.
“With wage growth abating, the labor market is playing along with the Federal Reserve’s effort to slow inflation,” Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP, said in a press release. “If inflation goes back up, it won’t be because of labor.”
US private payrolls in July increased far less than the 150,000 positions forecast by economists polled by Reuters, but that likely is not a true reflection of a labor market that continues to moderate gradually, Reuters reported.
Here is the change in private-sector employment by industry sector:
- Goods-producing, up 37,000
- Natural resources/mining, up 2,000
- Construction, up 39,000
- Manufacturing, down 4,000
- Service-providing, up 85,000
- Trade/transportation/utilities, up 61,000
- Information, down 18,000
- Financial activities, up 14,000
- Professional/business services, down 37,000
- Education/health services, up 22,000
- Leisure/hospitality, up 24,000
- Other services, up 19,000
Looking at job growth by company size, small firms lost 7,000 jobs in July, midsize firms added 70,000 and large firms added 62,000.
By region, the South led by adding 55,000 jobs. The West followed with an increase of 32,000 jobs, while the Northeast added 21,000 and the Midwest added 17,000.