Automatic Data Processing (ADP), a U.S. employment information firm, said on the 25th (local time) that U.S. private payrolls fell by an average of 13,500 per week over four weeks from Oct. 12 to Nov. 8 compared with the previous period.
ADP said, "As we enter the holiday shopping season's hiring rush, the strength of consumer spending is in question," and noted, "This situation may be delaying or limiting job creation."
Separate from its monthly employment report, ADP also releases a weekly provisional estimate of employment changes. Because the latest government employment indicators have been delayed by the federal government shutdown (partial suspension of functions) that began on Oct. 1 and ended on the 12th, high-frequency indicators produced by private firms like ADP are drawing attention.
The U.S. Department of Labor said on the 20th that nonfarm payrolls in the United States increased by 119,000 from the previous month in the September employment report. However, the unemployment rate rose to 4.4% compared with 4.3% a month earlier. The Labor Department's employment indicators were released more than a month later than initially scheduled, so they reflected the employment situation in September, not October.