Private payroll company ADP reports that US jobs grew 291,000 in January, the highest since 2015. The US Labor Department will report It’s jobs report on Friday. In December they reported a lower than expected 145k v 160k non farm payroll additions after the US lost 12,000 manufacturing jobs.
Private payroll company ADP reports that US jobs grew 291,000 in January, the highest since 2015. The US Labor Department will report It’s jobs report on Friday. In December they reported a lower than expected 145k v 160k non farm payroll additions after the US lost 12,000 manufacturing jobs.
ADP US January Employment Report
ADP report +291K new jobs higher than an expected +158K which was the best reading since May 2015 The prior report was +202K, which was slightly revised down to +199K.
Where ADP Saw New Jobs
- Leisure and hospitality added 96,000 new jobs
- Education and health services added 70,000
- Professional and business services added 49,000.
- Construction rose by 47,000, the best growth since 62,000 added in January 2019
- Manufacturing was up 10,000, the biggest monthly gain since last February.
- Services added 237,000 positions compared with 54,000 for goods producers.
- Trade transportation and utilities rose by 8,000,
- Information and financial activities sectors both added 2,000
- Natural resources and mining was the sole loser with a drop of 2,000.
It is important to note weather was unseasonly warm and this really pumped the numbers Leisure and hospitality and construction are both weather-sensitive and got big boosts from the higher than normal temperatures and litttle rain. ADP’s Zandi said as a reult the underlying trend for monthly job gains is about half of the January report, or around 150,000, still enough to maintain the unemployment rate.
Job expansion was concentrated in businesses that have 50 to 499 employees, with growth of 128,000. Small companies added 94,000 while large industries grew by 69,000.
The ADP count comes two days ahead of the government’s nonfarm payrolls report, which includes government jobs that ADP does not count. Job growth likely came in at 158,000 compared with the initially reported 145,000 in December, according to Dow Jones estimates. The unemployment rate is expected to hold at 3.5%, the lowest since December 1969. Note the ADP estimate can differ substantially differ on a month-to-month basis, as they did in December when ADP’s figure was well ahead of what the Labor Department reported. However, for all of 2019, ADP actually undershot the government count. ADP was an average of 162,000 per month compared with about 176,00
December 2019 U.S. Employment Report
The Fed Chair Powell came out with a more dovish tone as expected at the last FOMC cutting rates following market fatigue from the trade wars and the resultant uncertainty but blins acceptance of phase one. There has been an ongoing campaign by US Presdent Trump calling for lower rates and criticising the Federal Reserve for raising in the past year. Federal Reserve President Powell and other Fed Governors have admitted they are unsure of the path for wages and inflation. In February American wages hit their highest levels in a decade at 3.4%, but has fallen back to 2.9% in December, lower than expected
The market expected the December report released Friday to see nonfarm payrolls rise in line with longer-run trends in monthly employment growth at a consensus of 160,000 new jobs, recovered from the GM strike. Last month it came in higher but revised higher at 256,000. Logic suggests a return to the mean after the volatility in the hiring data. The wages data gives us indications of the FOMC plans on rates into 2019 and 2020. Unemployment is near a 49 year low with higher participation and the two month NFP revision was -14,000 change to jobs last month.
However, the combination of weaker PMI readings and skill shortages amid a low unemployment rate of 3.7% pose downside risks. More important could be the earnings data, which missed expectations in April and May. Any further cooling of pay growth would raise the odds of the FOMC’s next policy change being a rate cut.
Employment:
- Non-farm payrolls +145k vs +160K expected, Prior +256K (revised from 266 K)
- Unemployment rate 3.5% vs 3.5% expected/prior
- Participation rate 63.2% vs 63.2% expected.prior (63.3% highest since 2014)
- Underemployment rate 6.7% vs 6.9 % prior
- Two month net revision -14k vs Prior +41K
- Manufacturing payrolls -12k vs +5k expected, +40k Prior (April was first loss since Oct 2016)
- Private payrolls +139k vs 153k expected, 178K Prior
Wages:
- Average hourly earnings +0.02% m/m v +0.2% m/m Prior/Expected
- Average hourly earnings +2.9% y/y vs 3.1% exp, Prior y/y
- Average weekly hours 34.3 v 34.4 exp Prior 34.4
Household Survey Data
In December, the unemployment rate held at 3.5 percent, and the number of unemployed persons was unchanged at 5.8 million. A year earlier, the jobless rate was 3.9 percent, and the number of unemployed persons was 6.3 million.
Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rates for adult men (3.1 percent), adult women (3.2 percent), teenagers (12.6 percent), Whites (3.2 percent), Blacks (5.9 percent), Asians (2.5 percent), and Hispanics (4.2 percent) showed little or no change in December.
The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more), at 1.2 million, was unchanged in December and accounted for 20.5 percent of the unemployed.
The labor force participation rate was unchanged at 63.2 percent in December. The employment-population ratio was 61.0 percent for the fourth consecutive month but was up by 0.4 percentage point over the year.
The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons, at 4.1 million, changed little in December but was down by 507,000 over the year. These individuals, who would have preferred full-time employment, were working part time because their hours had been reduced or they were unable to find full-time jobs.
In December, 1.2 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force, down by 310,000 from a year earlier. (Data are not seasonally adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey.
Among the marginally attached, there were 277,000 discouraged workers in December, down by 98,000 from a year earlier. (Data are not seasonally adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 969,000 persons marginally attached to the labor force in December had not searched for work for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities.
Establishment Survey Data
Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 145,000 in December. Notable job gains occurred in retail trade and health care, while mining lost jobs. In 2019, payroll employment rose by 2.1 million, down from a gain of 2.7 million in 2018.
In December, retail trade added 41,000 jobs. Employment increased in clothing and accessories stores (+33,000) and in building material and garden supply stores (+7,000); both industries showed employment declines in the prior month. Employment in retail trade changed little, on net, in both 2019 and 2018 (+9,000 and +14,000, respectively).
Employment in health care increased by 28,000 in December. Ambulatory health care services and hospitals added jobs over the month (+23,000 and +9,000, respectively). Health care added 399,000 jobs in 2019, compared with an increase of 350,000 in 2018.
Employment in leisure and hospitality continued to trend up in December (+40,000). The industry added 388,000 jobs in 2019, similar to the increase in 2018 (+359,000).
Mining employment declined by 8,000 in December. In 2019, employment in mining declined by 24,000, after rising by 63,000 in 2018.
Construction employment changed little in December (+20,000). Employment in the industry rose by 151,000 in 2019, about half of the 2018 gain of 307,000.
In December, employment in professional and business services showed little change (+10,000). The industry added 397,000 jobs in 2019, down from an increase of 561,000 jobs in 2018. Employment in transportation and warehousing changed little in December (-10,000). Employment in the industry increased by 57,000 in 2019, about one-fourth of the 2018 gain of 216,000.
Manufacturing employment was little changed in December (-12,000). Employment in the industry changed little in 2019 (+46,000), after increasing in 2018 (+264,000). In December, employment showed little change in other major industries, including wholesale trade, information, financial activities, and government.
In December, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls rose by 3 cents to $28.32. Over the last 12 months, average hourly earnings have increased by 2.9 percent. In December, average hourly earnings of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees, at $23.79, were little changed (+2 cents).
The average workweek for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls was unchanged at 34.3 hours in December. In manufacturing, the average workweek and overtime remained at 40.5 hours and 3.2 hours, respectively. The average workweek of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees held at 33.5 hours.
The change in total nonfarm payroll employment for October was revised down by 4,000 from +156,000 to +152,000, and the change for November was revised down by 10,000 from +266,000 to +256,000. With these revisions, employment gains in October and November combined were 14,000 lower than previously reported. (Monthly revisions result from additional reports received from businesses and government agencies since the last published estimates and from the recalculation of seasonal factors.) After revisions, job gains have averaged 184,000 over the last 3 months
The Employment Situation for January is scheduled to be released on Friday, February 7, 2020, at 8:30 a.m. (EST).
Source: AFP, Challanger, DOL, TradersCommunity Data, BLS
From The TraderCommunity Research Desk