Data show US companies create less jobs than projected

Company payrolls increased by 117,000 during the month, according to ADP Research Institute data released Wednesday. The median projection in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for an increase of 205,000. The prior month was revised up to a 195,000 rise.

The number of employees at US businesses rose in February by less than expected, underscoring the labor market’s struggle to recover despite a decline in Covid-19 infections in recent weeks.

The figures suggest that employment gains are being held back by pandemic-related constraints on businesses and economic activity. Even so, many economists expect a continued improvement in the labor market in the coming months as Covid-19 vaccinations pick up and virus concerns ease. (Representative Image) (AFP)

Company payrolls increased by 117,000 during the month, according to ADP Research Institute data released Wednesday. The median projection in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for an increase of 205,000. The prior month was revised up to a 195,000 rise.

The figures suggest that employment gains are being held back by pandemic-related constraints on businesses and economic activity. Even so, many economists expect a continued improvement in the labor market in the coming months as Covid-19 vaccinations pick up and virus concerns ease.

“The labor market continues to post a sluggish recovery across the board,” Nela Richardson, ADP’s chief economist, said in a statement. “We’re seeing large-sized companies increasingly feeling the effects of Co-19, while job growth in the goods producing sector pauses.”

The data precede Friday’s monthly jobs report from the Labor Department, which is forecast to show that private payrolls increased by 200,000 in February, following a gain of just 6,000 in the prior month.

The gain in employment was led by services, which rose by 131,000, the ADP data showed. Payrolls at goods-producing businesses, meanwhile, decreased by 14,000, led by manufacturing.