Private employers south of the border added 147,000 jobs in October, below economists' expectations, that word Wednesday from a report by a payrolls processor.
Economists had forecast the ADP National Employment Report would show a gain of 165,000 jobs, with estimates ranging from 130,000 to 190,000.
Private payroll gains in the month earlier were revised up to 202,000 from an originally reported 154,000 increase.
The ADP figures come before of the U.S. Labor Department's non-farm payrolls report on Friday, which includes both public and private-sector employment.
Economists are looking for U.S. private payroll employment to have improved by 166,000 jobs in October, down from 167,000 the month before. Total non-farm employment is expected to have risen by 175,000.
The unemployment rate is forecast to tick down to 4.9% from the 5% recorded a month earlier.
