A report released by payroll processor ADP on Wednesday showed private sector employment in the U.S. increased by more than expected in the month of February.
ADP said private sector employment jumped by 242,000 jobs in February after climbing by an upwardly revised 119,000 jobs in January.
Economists had expected private sector employment to increase by 200,000 jobs compared to the addition of 106,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.
Meanwhile, the report said annual wage growth for those remaining in their jobs slowed to 7.2 percent in February, reflecting the slowest growth in 12 months.
ADP said annual wage growth for job changers also decelerated to 14.3 percent in February from 14.9 percent in January.
