US businesses hire fewer workers in January

US businesses slowed the pace of hiring in January after a December surge, payrolls firm ADP said yesterday in a closely watched report ahead of the government’s job data. The US private sector added a net 170,000 jobs from December, when they added a...

US businesses slowed the pace of hiring in January after a December surge, payrolls firm ADP said yesterday in a closely watched report ahead of the government’s job data.

The US private sector added a net 170,000 jobs from December, when they added a revised 292,000 payrolls, ADP said.

The January jobs gain was well below the 200,000 new jobs expected by most analysts.

The slowdown in hiring was in line with expectations for Friday’s official January labour report.

The average analyst estimate is for the unemployment rate to remain unchanged at 8.5 per cent, with the net number of jobs added to the economy falling to 155,000 from 200,000 in December.

Analysts projected the private sector boosted the number of positions by 168,000 in January, compared with 212,000 the previous month.

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