Companies Added 190,000 Workers in August, ADP Reports

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David Paul Morris/Bloomberg News

Companies in the United States added 190,000 workers to payrolls in August, figures from the ADP Research Institute in Roseland, New Jersey, showed Sept. 2.

The median forecast of 45 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News called for a 200,000 advance, with estimates ranging from gains of 160,000 to 230,000. The July reading was revised to 177,000 from a previously reported 185,000 increase.

“Recent global financial market turmoil has not slowed the U.S. job market, at least not yet,” Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics Inc., said in a statement. Moody’s produces the figures with ADP. “Job growth remains strong and broad-based, except in the energy industry.”

A Labor Department report Sept. 4 is projected to show employers, including government agencies, took on 218,000 workers last month, while the jobless rate fell to a seven-year low of 5.2%.



Goods-producing industries, which include manufacturers and construction companies, increased headcount by 17,000 in August, according to the ADP report.

Construction employment climbed by 17,000, and factory payrolls rose 7,000. Employment at service providers rose 173,000 in August, led by gains in professional and business services.

Companies employing 500 or more workers added 40,000 jobs. Headcount at businesses with 50 to 499 employees increased by 66,000, and the smallest companies boosted payrolls by 85,000, the report showed.