Private sector companies created 107,000 jobs in January, much less than expected, and down sharply compared to December, while wage growth slowed again, according to the monthly ADP/Stanford Lab survey published Wednesday.
Analysts were counting on 140,000 creations, according to the Briefing.com consensus.
In December, the strength of the job market was surprising, and 158,000 private jobs were created, according to downwardly revised data also published by ADP.