In March, the ADP employment report showed that private employment rose by 201 000, marginally weaker than expected (208 000), while the previous figure was downwardly revised from 217 000 to 208 000.
The details show that employment rose significantly among small firms (102 000 from 96 000), but also in medium size firms (82 000 from 101 000). In large companies, employment rose by 17 000 in March, from 11 000. Sector details show that the manufacturing sector remains in good shape, as employment rose by 37 000 (from 20 000 in February), while employment fell slightly in the construction sector (- 5 000). Also in the services sector, employment continued to grow at a strong pace (164 000 from 187 000). This figure confirms that the US labour market is gradually improving, which we hope to see confirmed by Friday’s payrolls report.