U.S. private employment rose much lower than expected in July, but this may not reflect the true reality of the labor market which continues to gradually slow.
Private employment increased by 122,000 jobs this month after rising by 155,000 in June, according to the ADP National Employment Report released on Wednesday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast private employment to rise by 150,000 after previous reports showed an increase of 150,000.
The ADP report, developed in conjunction with the Stanford Digital Economy Lab, was published ahead of a more comprehensive and closely watched jobs report for July from the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday.
Economists interviewed by Reuters expected BLS data to show 148,000 jobs were created in the private sector in July, up from 136,000 added in June. Total payrolls are estimated to have increased by 175,000 jobs compared to 206,000 in June. The unemployment rate is expected to remain unchanged at 4.1%.
The US dollar index, which measures the strength of the greenback against six major currencies, continued to decline by 0.59% to a trading level of 103.707
