MW ADP jobs report says 146,000 workers hired in November. U.S. jobs market in stable condition.

By Jeffry Bartash

Businesses are not laying off many employees

The numbers: U.S. businesses created a solid 146,000 new jobs in November, paycheck company ADP said, in another sign the labor market has stabilized after big cooldown over the summer.

Economists polled by the Wall Street Journal had forecast a gain of 163,000 new jobs in the ADP's November survey.

The number of new private-sector jobs created in October was revised down to 184,000 from 233,000.

ADP has not a good predictor of the government's official jobs estimate that follows a few days later, but the two reports do move in the same direction over time.

The government on Friday is expected to report a rebound in new jobs to to 213,000 in November from a meager 12,000 in October, a Wall Street Journal poll of economists showed.

Employment in October was depressed by a strike at Boeing $(BA)$ and widespread damage in the South from hurricanes Milton and Helene.

Key details: Most of the new jobs last month were created in health care, transportation, construction and education. Almost half of the new hiring took place in the South, mainly at large companies.

Big picture: Businesses aren't hiring in bunches anymore, but they aren't laying off many people, either. Job creation has been steady and the unemployment rate is still extremely low at 4.1%.

Whether hiring improves much in 2025 will depend on how steeply the Federal Reserve cuts interest rates and whether the policies of the incoming Trump administration boost the economy.

Market reaction: The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA and S&P 500 SPX were set to open higher in Wednesday trading. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose slightly to 4.28%.

-Jeffry Bartash

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December 04, 2024 08:21 ET (13:21 GMT)

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