Private Sector Adds 93K Jobs

Private-sector job creation gathered momentum in the U.S. last month, with a new survey showing employers added the most jobs in three years.

According to the ADP National Employment Report, private-sector employment leaped by 93,000 from October to November – the strongest one-month gain since November 2007. Economists had forecasted a more modest increase of 64,000.

In another positive sign, payroll processor ADP (NYSE:ADP) also upwardly revised its October private-sector job creation estimate from 43,000 to 82,000.

The report “shows an acceleration of employment and suggests the nation's employment situation is brightening somewhat,” Joel Prakken, chairman of Macroeconomic Advisers, said in a statement. However, due to the slow economy, he said, “it would not be surprising to see several more months of only moderate gains in employment even as the economic recovery gathers momentum.”

The report, which is released by both ADP and Macroeconomic Advisers, is derived from actual payroll data and measures the change in total nonfarm private employment each month.

The stronger-than-expected ADP report could be a bullish sign ahead of Friday’s more close-watched government jobs report, which is expected to reveal employers created 140,000 private-sector jobs in November. Total nonfarm payrolls are expected to have risen by 130,000 and the unemployment rate is expected to stay flat at 9.6%.

ADP said small businesses added 54,000 jobs in November, medium businesses boosted jobs by 37,000 and large-business employment was virtually flat at up 2,000.

Service-producing jobs soared by 79,000 last month, while goods-producing jobs were up 14,000 – the first increase since March 2007. Construction employment slid by just 3,000, the smallest decline since June 2007.

“Most businesses still have little reason to add to their payrolls due to the ongoing uncertainty in the economy,” said ADP CEO Gary Butler.