private sector employment

Private employers added a much-better-than-expected 217,000 jobs in February, ADP has reported. That's the fifth straight month of job gains in the private sector -- another sign that the U.S. labor market continues to slowly heal.

The economy lost 95,000 jobs in September, because the private sector hired only 64,000 workers while governments cut 159,000. The jobless rate remains 9.6%. Minus the usual boosts from housing and consumers, the U.S. still lacks a catalyst for new jobs.

The private sector created 67,000 jobs in August, more than the 40,000 gain economists had forecast. And job-loss totals for June and July were revised substantially downward. The jobless rate ticked up to 9.6% as more people started looking for jobs.

Employment just can't get cranked up: ADP reports that the private sector added a scant 13,000 jobs in June, well below expectations. Ominously, the firm notes that "private employment may have decelerated heading into summer."

Just call it a month in which the private-sector job market treaded water: It lost 203,000 jobs in October, following a revised 227,000 reduction in September, according to data compiled in the ADP National Employment Report. September's original loss estimate was 254,000. Economists surveyed by...