Private companies added 86,000 jobs in October, slightly higher than expected, ADP says

US private companies added 86,000 jobs in October, matching September’s downwardly revised total and beating economists’ expectation of 75,000. The figures suggest private-sector hiring held steady as the labour market showed signs of stabilising.

Service industries accounted for most gains: trade, transport and utilities added 39,000 jobs, education and health services 28,000, and leisure and hospitality 19,000. Professional and business services lost 27,000 jobs; workers’ base pay rose 3.2% over the year, while job-changers’ pay rose 4.8%. The ADP figures precede the government’s jobs report, which economists expected to show 59,000 new jobs in October.