U.S. private-sector hiring rose less than expected in May, while the number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits rose last week to a five-week high, two reports said Thursday, suggesting that the job market is recovering slowly. Payroll provider ADP said businesses added 133,000 jobs last month, higher than the 113,000 added in April, which was the weakest performance in seven months. Economists had expected a gain of 148,000 in May. The ADP figure comes ahead of the government's more comprehensive labor-market report Friday, which includes both public- and private-sector employment. The report is expected to show a net gain of between 150,000 and 158,000 non-agriculture jobs in May. Meanwhile, the Labor Department reported Thursday that new jobless claims rose 10,000 to 383,000 last week. The four-week moving average, considered a better measure of labor-market trends, increased for the first time in a month, rising to 374,500. Jobless claims had been flat at about 370,000 for four weeks, suggesting that hiring could accelerate in May. When claims drop below 375,000, it usually suggests that hiring is strong enough to lower the unemployment rate, which currently stands at 8.1 percent. The unemployment rate has fallen from 9.1 percent in August. Part of the reason for the decline is that employers added 1.5 million jobs since then, but it also has dropped because some people quit looking for work. The government counts people as unemployed only if they are actively seeking a job.
