ADP Reports April Nonfarm Private Employment Decreased 491,000

Nonfarm Private Employment Decreased 742,000 according to the April ADP National Employment Report®.

Nonfarm private employment decreased 491,000 from March to April 2009 on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the ADP National Employment Report®. The estimated change of employment from February to March was revised by 34,000, from a decline of 742,000 to a decline of 708,000.



Highlights

• Total Nonfarm employment fell by 491,000 vs. 742,000 last month.
  
• Service sector employment fell by 229,000 vs. 415,000 last month.
• Employment in the goods-producing sector declined 262,000, the twenty-eirhth consecutive monthly decline. Last month the goods-producing sector declined 327,000.
• Employment in the manufacturing sector declined 159,000, its thirty-eighth consecutive decline. Last month the manufacturing sector declined 206,000.
• Construction employment dropped 95,000 vs 118,000 last month. This was its twenty-seventh consecutive monthly decline, and brings the total decline in construction jobs since the peak in January 2007 to to 1,261,000.

April’s construction decline was the smallest since November of 2008.

Medium Businesses Leading The Decline



The above chart, 4th in a series of 5 interesting charts (click on the first link above to see all the charts) shows shows job losses stopped accelerating. However, 500,000 job are still very significant.

Medium sized businesses, defined as 50-499 employees are have been leading the decline in jobs lost starting summer 2008. Small sized companies (1-49) employees were hanging very tough until July 2008. That is no longer the case.

Small Business Report

The ADP Small Business Report notes the following breakdowns.

• Total small business employment: -183,000 vs. -284,000 last month.
• Total medium business employment: -231,000 vs. -330,000 last month.
• Total large business employment: -77,000 vs. -128,000 last month.

According to Joel Prakken, Chairman of Macroeconomic Advisers, LLC, “Nonfarm private employment decreased 491,000 from March to April 2009 on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the ADP National Employment Report. Despite some recent indications that stock prices, consumer spending, and housing activity may be bottoming out, employment, which usually trails overall economic activity, is likely to decline for at least several more months, although perhaps not as rapidly as during the last six months.

Look for another grim employment report on Friday, perhaps in the range of 400,000 to 700,000 jobs lost. This will be the 16th consecutive months of jobs lost with no end in sight.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com
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