Private sector job growth slowed in March, coming in below expectations.
Payroll processing company ADP reported that payrolls increased by 145,000 last month, far lower than the Dow Jones estimate of 210,000, according to CNBC.
First-quarter hiring fell to just 175,000 jobs per month, a significant drop from a year prior, when job growth numbers averaged 397,000 per month in the first quarter of 2022.
“Our March payroll data is one of several signals that the economy is slowing,” Nela Richardson, ADP’s chief economist, said in a press release.
“Employers are pulling back from a year of strong hiring and pay growth, after a three-month plateau, is inching down.”
In Texas, March median pay grew 7.5% year-over-year, and median annual pay was $55,600, according to ADP data.
Nationwide, annual pay increased 6.9% in March, down from 7.2% in February, per ADP’s report.
Jobs created in the services and goods-producing sectors were almost evenly split, a rare occurrence given that the U.S. Economy is heavily weighted towards the service sector, according to CNBC. Goods producers saw 70,000 jobs added, while services saw job growth of 75,000, according to ADP’s report.
Among the sectors with the most significant job losses were financial services, which lost 51,000 jobs, followed by professional and business services, which lost 46,000 jobs. There was also a loss of 30,000 jobs in manufacturing.
With 98,000 new jobs added, the leisure and hospitality sector grew the fastest in March.
The trade, transportation, and utilities sector grew by 56,000, while the construction sector grew by 53,000. In addition, natural resources and mining saw an increase of 47,000 workers, while education and health services saw an increase of 17,000.
Companies with less than 50 employees saw the most job growth, with 101,000, a noticeable uptick from prior reports that showed limited job growth from small companies, according to CNBC.
The ADP jobs report is released ahead of Friday’s Labor Department nonfarm payrolls report.
Although both reports are meant to gauge economic health, there can be a disparity in the numbers, with ADP’s report averaging 100,000 jobs lower than the government report in 2022.