Private businesses hired at a very anemic pace in April as factory jobs declined, according to a report released Wednesday.

Private-sector jobs in the U.S. increased just 119,000 last month, according to a national employment report calculated by payroll processor Automatic Data Processing Inc. (ADP) and consultancy Macroeconomic Advisers.

The gain was far below economists' median expectation of 175,000 contained in a survey done by Dow Jones Newswires.

The March data were revised to show an advance of 201,000 instead of the 209,000 increase reported earlier.

The ADP survey tallies only private-sector jobs, while the Bureau of Labor Statistics' nonfarm payroll data, to be released Friday, include government workers.

The March change in nonfarm payrolls was very disappointing, with only 120,000 jobs added. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires expect total nonfarm payrolls rose by a faster 168,000 in April, but that rate is not fast enough to change the jobless rate, which is forecast to remain at 8.2%.

The very weak ADP measure may cause economists to alter their payrolls forecast.

The latest ADP report showed large businesses with 500 employees or more added only 4,000 employees to their staffs in April, while medium-size businesses added 57,000 workers and small businesses that employ fewer than 50 workers hired 58,000 new workers.

Service-sector jobs increased by 123,000 last month, and factory jobs fell 5,000.

ADP, of Roseland, N.J., says it processes payments of one in six U.S. workers. Macroeconomic Advisers, based in St. Louis, is an economic-consulting firm.

In other Wednesday job news, TrimTabs Investment Research says April payrolls grew by 116,000 new jobs, down from their estimate of 150,000 positions created in March.

Trimtabs uses daily tax deposits to calculate the monthly change in payrolls.

-By Kathleen Madigan, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2466; kathleen.madigan@dowjones.com

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