Data Point to Growth in Jobs in June

New claims for unemployment benefits in the United States declined last week to their lowest level in nearly two months, according to a government survey on Thursday, while a separate report on jobs from the payroll processor ADP was better than economists had forecast.

The reports were released a day ahead of the national monthly survey of the jobs market. Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News predicted that the survey would show the economy added 100,000 nonfarm payrolls in June, up from a gain of 54,000 in May. The survey by Bloomberg did not reflect forecasts for the unemployment rate, which had edged up to 9.1 percent in May from 9.0 percent in April.

The Labor Department said that initial claims for unemployment benefits declined by 14,000 to 418,000 as of July 1, reflecting a seasonally adjusted total. Economists had predicted 420,000.

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Stocks Gain on Potential Jobs Improvement

Wall Street traded higher on Thursday after two encouraging employment reports.

The government said the number of people who made first-time claims for unemployment benefits dropped to 418,000 last week, slightly below estimates and the lowest figure in seven weeks.

And Automatic Data Processing, a private payroll processor, said companies added 157,000 employees in June. That’s more than double the figure economists had forecast and far higher than the 36,000 added the previous month.

The two reports come a day before the Labor Department releases its monthly look at employment. Economists estimate the unemployment rate will remain at 9.1 percent and that employers added only 90,000 jobs last month.

In midday trading, the Dow Jones industrial average added 93.89 points, or 0.74 percent, to 12,719.91. The broader Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index gained 12.92 points, or 0.96 percent, to 1,352.14, and the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite rose 38.28 points, or 1.35 percent, to 2,872.30.

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