- Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics Inc
American companies created more jobs than expected in November, a further sign that the US labour market continued to strengthen. The number of Americans employed in the US private sector surged by 217,000, the biggest gain in five months and followed a 196,000 increase in the preceding month, according to the ADP Research Institute. Companies are adding employees and retaining those already employed as a tighter labour market makes it difficult for them to find skilled and experienced workers. Fed policy makers are closely watching progress toward full employment as they consider whether the world's largest economy is strong enough to weather an increase in the benchmark interest rate, a decision that may unfold in two weeks.
The ADP report precedes a more comprehensive government November jobs report, that is expected to show employment growth cooled to a more sustainable level after an October increase. Companies took on 200,000 workers in November following a 271,000 increase in the previous month that was the most this year, according to the median forecast of economists.
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