Private job growth accelerated in April but fell a bit short of Wall Street expectations, according to a report Wednesday from payroll processing firm ADP.
Companies added 742,000 workers for the month, a jump from March’s upwardly revised 565,000 but a bit shy of the 800,000 forecast from economists surveyed by Dow Jones.
Leisure and hospitality, the sector hurt the most by pandemic-related business lockdowns, led growth with 237,000 new positions. The industry is still about 3 million shy of where it was before the pandemic but has been adding jobs steadily since federal and state governments have been relaxing restrictions.