2018.04.0408:59:00UTC+00U.S. Private Sector Employment Jumps More Than Expected In March

Private sector employment in the U.S. increased by more than expected in the month of March, according to a report released by payroll processor ADP on Wednesday.

ADP said employment surged up by 241,000 jobs in March after jumping by an upwardly revised 246,000 jobs in February.

Economists had expected an increase of about 205,000 jobs compared to the addition of 235,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.

"Monthly job growth remains firmly over 200,000, double the pace of labor force growth," said Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody's Analytics. "The tight labor market continues to tighten."

The report said employment in the service-providing sector jumped by 176,000 jobs, while employment in the goods-producing sector also increased by a notable 65,000 jobs.

ADP said employment at medium-sized businesses shot up by 127,000. Employment at large and small businesses also climbed by 67,000 jobs and 47,000 jobs, respectively.

"Midsized businesses added nearly half of all jobs this month, the best growth this segment has seen since the fall of 2014," said Ahu Yildirmaz, vice president and co-head of the ADP Research Institute.

On Friday, the Labor Department is scheduled to release its closely watched monthly employment report, which includes both public and private sector jobs.

Employment is expected to increase by 198,000 jobs in March after spiking by 313,000 jobs in February. The unemployment rate is expected to dip to 4.0 percent from 4.1 percent.