US May ADP Private Payrolls Rise 122,000, Topping Forecasts

US private-sector job growth exceeded market expectations in May.

ADP said on June 3 that US private nonfarm payrolls increased by 122,000 from a month earlier. That was higher than the 109,000 increase in April and above the 84,000 estimate from economists surveyed by Dow Jones.

Education and health services led the gains, adding 57,000 jobs in May. Trade, transportation and utilities added 36,000.

Annual wage growth was 4.4% in May from a year earlier.

"May hiring was more broadly distributed across sectors than we have seen in recent years," Nela Richardson, ADP's chief economist, said. "The labor market is continuing to build momentum ahead of the summer hiring season."

ADP's employment report is typically released two days before the Labor Department's official jobs report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and is often viewed as a preview. The private survey, however, does not always move in the same direction as the government's data.