By Scott Kanowsky
Investing.com -- U.S. private payrolls growth slowed by more than expected in November, according to figures from the ADP National Employment report on Wednesday.
Private employment increased by 127,000 jobs during the month, down from 239,000 in October and well below economists' forecasts of 200,000.
It marks the lowest rate of growth in private sector job creation since January 2021. Segments like construction and manufacturing - which are exposed to a recent uptick in interest rates by the Federal Reserve - were among the biggest laggards, but were offset by gains in consumer-facing industries like healthcare and hospitality.
Pay growth also moderated, rising annually by 7.6% for job stayers and 15.1% for job changers, although ADP noted that it remains at "elevated" levels.
“Turning points can be hard to capture in the labor market, but our data suggest that Federal Reserve tightening is having an impact on job creation and pay gains,” said Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP.
“In addition, companies are no longer in hyper-replacement mode. Fewer people are quitting and the post-pandemic recovery is stabilizing.”
The Fed's interest rate increases have come as the U.S. central bank looks to tamp down demand and cool soaring inflation. Policymakers have moved to hike borrowing costs by 375 basis points in 2022 - the Fed's most aggressive pace of rises in decades - in a bid to corral price growth that is at more than three times its 2% target.