- Narayana Kocherlakota, Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank President
US private sector created fewer jobs than expected in April, adding to recent soft fundamentals from the world's number one economy. US private employers added 169,000 jobs last month, the fewest since January 2014 and considerably below economists' expectations. March's private payrolls were revised down to an increase of 175,000 jobs from the previously reported 189,000. The ADP figures come ahead of the Labor Department's more comprehensive non-farm payrolls report due to be released on Friday, which includes both public and private-sector employment. Economists expect total US employment to have grown by 224,000 jobs last month, up from 126,000 in March. The unemployment rate is predicted to decline to 5.4% from 5.5%. Meanwhile, the cost of labour in the US increased at an annualized rate of 5% in the first quarter of the year, compared with the 4.5% advance expected by market analysts.
The US Federal Reserve should not raise interest rates this year amid soft economic data in the first quarter, Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank President Narayana Kocherlakota reiterated, pointing to very low inflation rates and still fragile economic growth. Yet, Kocherlakota is a non-voting member on the Fed's policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee this year.
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