US firms add 109,000 jobs, most since early 2025, ADP says

U.S. companies boosted payrolls in April by the most in over a year, the latest evidence of stabilization in the labor market. 

Private-sector payrolls rose 109,000 in April after a revised 61,000 advance in the prior month, according to ADP Research data out Wednesday. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for a 120,000 increase.

More than half of the hiring advance was due to health services and education. Trade, transportation and utilities payrolls also increased. Construction employment grew, which may reflect the building of data centers that are at the heart of massive investment in artificial intelligence.

The figures showcase a labor market that is finding its footing after an especially harsh year for hiring. Some employers may be more at ease adding to headcount now that there’s more clarity around tariff, immigration and other fiscal policies. Moreover, layoffs remain low across the economy.

The report suggests the “labor market continued positive momentum in April after a solid March,” Alex Pelle, an economist at Mizuho Securities USA, said in a note.

Employment growth was fueled by businesses with fewer than 20 employees and those with 500 or more. Hiring was strong in the West and South.

“Small and large employers are hiring, but we’re seeing softness in the middle,” Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP and a contributor to Bloomberg Television, said in a statement.

Wage growth

The ADP report, published in collaboration with the Stanford Digital Economy Lab, also showed workers who changed jobs saw a 6.6% increase in pay from a year earlier. Wage growth for those who stayed put was 4.4%, slightly less than a month earlier.

The government’s employment report due Friday is expected to show a more moderate pace of hiring in April, a month after the biggest advance since 2024.

Looking ahead, a key question is whether the Middle East conflict that’s already driven inflation higher and pushed consumer sentiment to record lows will eventually trickle down to the labor market. 

After the Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged last week, Chair Jerome Powell said the job market has shown “more and more signs of stability,” a reason why policymakers are in little rush to reduce borrowing costs.

ADP bases its findings on payrolls covering more than 26 million U.S. private-sector employees.

Fuel costs

Fuel costs for U.S. airlines increased by more than 56% in March from the month before, according to data from the federal government, shedding light on how the ongoing conflict in the Middle East is affecting the sector.

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics said in a news release Wednesday that oil consumption also grew by 19.5% from February to March and fuel cost per gallon was up almost 31%. The costs were also significantly higher when compared to March of last year.

Spiking fuel prices have been at the center of conversations in the airline industry since the U.S. and Israel launched the war with Iran in late February, largely shuttering the Strait of Hormuz, a key passageway for oil transports. The situation has resulted in carriers increasing fares and baggage fees, as well as cutting routes — creating anxiety for travelers heading into the busy summer travel season.

Defunct budget carrier Spirit Aviation Holdings Inc. also said the higher oil prices fueled its decision to cease operations over the weekend after more than 30 years in business.

Higher fuel costs have raised the possibility of consolidation among other airlines. United Airlines Holdings Inc. Chief Executive Officer Scott Kirby said last month that he had approached rival American Airlines Group Inc. about a potential merger.

Before that, Bloomberg reported he’d floated the proposal to government officials, including President Donald Trump. American rebuffed the attempt and Trump has also said he doesn’t like the idea.

Global debt

Investors are showing signs of diversifying away from U.S. Treasuries as global debt levels hit a record of nearly $353 trillion by the end of March, a report by the Institute of International Finance published on Wednesday found.

IIF’s quarterly Global Debt Monitor said that strengthening international demand for Japanese and European government bonds contrasted with broadly stable demand for U.S. Treasuries since the start of the year. 

“This highlights that there are some efforts by international investors diversifying away from U.S. Treasuries,” Emre Tiftik, director at the IIF for Global Markets and Policy, said during a webinar to discuss the report.

While there was “no immediate risk” in the $30 trillion U.S. Treasury market, long-term projections suggested U.S. government debt increasingly looked to be on an “unsustainable path”, he said, whereas debt ratios for the euro zone and Japan were now edging down. 

Under current policies, the U.S. debt-to-GDP ratio is expected to continue rising, the report said, while U.S. corporate bond markets continued to boom, supported by AI-related issuance and strong overseas inflows.

Washington’s borrowing push was one of the main drivers for global debt to rise by over $4.4 trillion in the first quarter, the fastest increase since mid‑2025 and the fifth straight quarterly increase, the IIF report said. 

Tiftik said the rise in U.S. debt had been largely driven by government borrowing.

He also pointed to a sharp acceleration in debt at the start of the year by Chinese non-financial corporate borrowers - predominantly state-owned firms - which significantly outpaced borrowing by the country’s government. 

Outside the world’s two biggest economies, debt across mature markets edged lower, while emerging markets, excluding China, saw levels rising modestly to a record $36.8 trillion, driven by government borrowing. 

Looking at key debt ratios, global debt stood at 305% of world economic output, broadly stable where it had been since 2023. However, debt ratios followed a similar pattern as debt levels - trending lower in mature markets and rising steadily in emerging economies.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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This story was originally published May 6, 2026 at 11:31 AM.