Private Sector Adds 212,000 Jobs In February: ADP

Private-sector employment gains continued in February but at a slower pace than in the prior month. Automatic Data Processing Inc. reported Wednesday that employers added 212,000 jobs last month, below January's revised gain to 250,000. January's gain was originally reported at 213,000. Economists use ADP's data to get a feeling for the Labor Department's employment report, which will be released Friday and covers government jobs in addition to the private sector. Economists polled by MarketWatch expect the government's report to show that nonfarm payroll rose by a 238,000 jobs last month, down from a gain of 257,000 in January. The ADP data has shown smaller gains than the nonfarm payroll data in recent months.