Private Payrolls in April Exceed Expectations

Labor Market Insights - Private-sector payrolls for April increased by 192K, surpassing the consensus estimate of 183K, but down from the revised 208K in March, indicating a warming trend in job growth [1] - The three-month average for private-sector job growth is now higher than the previous six months, suggesting a positive shift in the labor market [1] - Wage growth has moderated, with those remaining in their positions seeing a flat increase of 5%, while job changers experienced a decrease in wage growth to 9.3% from 10% in March [1] Job Creation by Company Size - Large companies (over 500 employees) contributed the majority of new jobs at 98K, while smaller companies (fewer than 50 employees) added the least at 38K, and medium-sized firms added 62K [2] - The Leisure & Hospitality sector led job creation with 56K new jobs, followed by Construction with 35K and Trade/Transportation/Utilities with 26K, indicating a trend towards industries requiring less formal education [2] Employment Projections - The upcoming nonfarm payroll estimate is projected at 240K new jobs, reflecting a recovery from a sub-200K period late last year, with an average of 280K new jobs per month since December [3] - Employment remains strong, although a slight decrease is expected in future reports [3] Corporate Earnings Reports - Mastercard reported Q1 earnings of $3.31 per share, exceeding expectations of $3.22 and significantly higher than $2.80 from the same quarter last year, with revenues of $6.35 billion slightly above the consensus [5] - Despite beating estimates, Mastercard's stock experienced a -3% decline in early trading due to guidance being lowered [5] - Estee Lauder's fiscal Q3 earnings of 97 cents per share more than doubled expectations of 48 cents, with revenues of $3.94 billion slightly exceeding projections [5] - However, Estee Lauder's stock fell -4% in pre-market trading due to lowered guidance related to concerns in the Chinese market [5]