The ADP national employment report shows the U.S. economy added 216,000 private-sector jobs from January to February, up from 173,000 from December to January and providing a preview for the official February employment report on Friday.

The private firm's report, while unofficial as far as the national employment rate goes, has already boosted stock futures (a good thing after Monday's sell-off). Business Insider's Joe Wiesenthal makes the case that this month's report is likely to be the closest to the official number of any month out of the year, arguing that the gap between ADP's report and the federal government's is smallest in February because the Bureau of Labor Statistics announces benchmark revisions in January, giving private firms the freshest data.

Want to add to this story? Let us know in comments or send an email to the author at amartin at theatlantic dot com. You can share ideas for stories on the Open Wire.
Adam Martin