US ADP private employment data revealed a slowdown in job creation for December, with 122k jobs added, missing market expectations of 143k, and prior month’s 146k.
Breaking down the numbers, goods-producing sectors added 10k jobs, while service-providing industries contributed 112k. Among these, healthcare emerged as a standout performer, leading job creation across sectors in the latter half of 2024.
By establishment size, large companies drove the gains with 97k new hires, while medium-sized businesses added 9k, and small firms contributed a modest 5k.
Wage growth continued to decelerate, with year-over-year pay increases for job-stayers at 4.6%, the slowest since July 2021. Job-changers saw slightly better gains at 7.1%, though this marked a decline from November.
Commenting on the results, Nela Richardson, Chief Economist at ADP, noted, “The labor market downshifted to a more modest pace of growth in the final month of 2024, with a slowdown in both hiring and pay gains.”
