ADP National Employment Report (02/05/14)

Employment increased by 175,000 jobs from December to January, according to the ADP National Employment Report. This is “in line with the average monthly growth throughout 2013,” says Carlos Rodriguez, president and chief executive officer of ADP.

Payroll growth for businesses with 49 or fewer employees decelerated in January, adding 75,000 jobs. This is the slowest pace of small-business job growth since August. Employment levels among medium-sized companies with 50-499 employees rose by 66,000, and employment at large companies with 500 or more employees increased by 34,000. While this represented an acceleration in job growth for mid-size firms, growth at large firms was nearly half of what it was in December.

Construction added 25,000 jobs in January, following gains of 30,000 and 32,000 in the prior two months, while manufacturing lost 12,000 jobs over the month following a revised gain of 16,000 jobs in December. Professional and business services added 49,000 jobs, down from an average of 65,000 the prior two months.