Automatic Data Processing Inc. estimated yesterday that private employers added 217,000 new jobs in February.

The majority of those jobs came at small and medium-sized businesses, which added 204,000 jobs, while large businesses added just 13,000 jobs.

The service industry added 202,000 new positions, the 13th consecutive month of increase for that sector.

The U.S. Department of Labor will release official numbers on Friday. The department said today that applications for unemployment benefits decreased by 20,000 to 368,000 in the week ended Feb. 26. The total number of people receiving unemployment insurance fell to the lowest level since October 2008.