Annual pay growth was little changed last month, the payroll processor said.
U.S. private-sector job creation rebounded last month as employment conditions could be showing signs of improving, according to new data from payroll processor ADP.
Payroll growth at private companies increased by 42,000 in October, the latest National Employment Report, released on Nov. 5, found.
This is up from a decline of 29,000 in September, which was revised and showed 3,000 fewer jobs lost.
The market consensus pointed to a more modest gain of 25,000.
“Private employers added jobs in October for the first time since July, but hiring was modest relative to what we reported earlier this year,” Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP, said in a statement.
Last month’s bounce back was driven mainly by trade, transportation, and utilities (47,000). Education and health services also added 26,000 positions, while the financial sector created 11,000 jobs.
However, while the artificial intelligence-driven boom in the tech industry has been at the forefront of a record run in U.S. financial markets, the information services sector eliminated 17,000 jobs in October.
The manufacturing sector shed 3,000 jobs, despite President Donald Trump’s trade agenda aiming to bring factory jobs back to the United States.
Other areas of the U.S. labor market that posted losses included professional and business services (down 15,000), other services (down 14,000), and leisure and hospitality (down 5,000).
Last month’s job creation came from businesses with at least 250 employees, bolstering payrolls by 76,000. Smaller businesses lost 34,000.
Annual pay growth was little changed from the previous month, coming in at 4.5 percent for job-stayers and 6.7 percent for job-changers.
“Pay growth has been largely flat for more than a year, indicating that shifts in supply and demand are balanced,” Richardson added.
In total, this year’s private-sector employment gains have averaged approximately 60,000, although payroll growth has slowed in the second half of 2025.
“Private sector data are becoming more precious as government data remain MIA. In more recent years, the relationship between ADP and BLS [Bureau of Labor Statistics] has improved but both series can be choppy,” Jeffrey Roach, chief economist at LPL Financial, said in a note emailed to The Epoch Times.
By Andrew Moran
