U.S. private employers boosted hiring in November, signaling job growth is likely strong enough to support the first Federal Reserve interest rate hike in nearly a decade when policymakers meet later this month.
The ADP National Employment Report showed private payrolls increased 217,000 last month on top of the upwardly revised 196,000 jobs added in October. The strong jobs gains suggest solid underlying momentum in the economy despite a struggling manufacturing sector.
“The current pace of job creation is twice that needed to absorb growth in the working age population,” Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, said in a statement. “The economy is fast approaching full employment and will be there no later than next summer.”
The ADP report, which is jointly developed with Moody’s Analytics, was released ahead of the Labor Department’s more comprehensive employment report on Friday.
According to a Reuters survey of economists, nonfarm payrolls increased 200,000 in November. While that would be a step-down from October’s robust 271,000 job gain, it would still be well above the amount needed to keep up with population growth.
