NEW YORK—Private businesses added more jobs than expected in July, according to a report released Wednesday, but similarly strong figures last month raised hopes that were dashed when the government’s official data were released.
Meanwhile, June orders for U.S. factory goods fell for the second time in three months, a sign the economy is causing strains among manufacturers. Orders for manufactured goods decreased 0.8% from the prior month to $440.69 billion, the Commerce Department said.
On the employment front, U.S. private-sector jobs rose by a modest 114,000 last month, according to a national employment report published by payroll giant Automatic Data Processing Inc. and consultancy Macroeconomic Advisers.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had expected ADP would report a gain of 105,000 for July. The June data were revised to show a rise of 145,000 versus the 157,000 first reported on July 7.
The strong June ADP jobs number had caused investors and economists to hope the U.S. labor markets had turned the corner toward stronger hiring. Stocks rose on the news, and many forecasters lifted their nonfarm-payrolls forecast after the release of the June number.
Instead, the Labor Department on July 8 said only 18,000 new jobs were added in June and the unemployment rate increased to 9.2% from 9.1%.
The ADP survey tallies only private-sector jobs, while the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ nonfarm-payroll data, to be released Friday, include government workers.
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