UPDATE 1-US Jan payrolls likely positive-ADP's Prakken

(Adds quotes, details)

NEW YORK Feb 3 (Reuters) - The U.S. nonfarm payrolls report this week is likely to show the economy added jobs in January for only the second time in two years, Macroeconomic Advisers LLC chairman Joel Prakken said on Wednesday.

The ADP Employer Services report is also likely to show a positive reading in its February edition, which is due next month, Prakken also told a teleconference of journalists.

However, the ADP report, which is jointly developed with Prakken's firm, uses a different set of figures than the government statistics that make up the nonfarm payrolls report.

The difference in sample data and the inclusion of government hiring, which is not covered by ADP, mean a positive payrolls figure is possible when it is reported on Friday, Prakken said.

"I think that's likely," Prakken told a teleconference of journalists when asked about the possibility of a positive payrolls print.

"Also note that the number on Friday that people focus on includes government hiring and the government is beginning to hire now for upcoming decennial census so that would give a stronger number to the total than in the private sector."

The payrolls report is usually the top economic release of the month. Analysts polled by Reuters expected this week's report to show a gain of 5,000 in January nonfarm payrolls, based on the median of their forecasts.

That would be the second positive reading since December 2007, when the recession began, after payrolls grew by 4,000 in November.

Prakken was speaking after the January ADP Employer Services report.

It showed U.S. private employers cut 22,000 jobs in January, the smallest drop since February 2008 and less than the 61,000 jobs lost in December.

Though private employment was still falling in January, he said conditions had improved from a year ago when the overall economy was losing more than half a million jobs a month.

"The climate has really improved quite dramatically," Prakken said, adding that he expected this to be reflected in next month's ADP report.

"I actually do expect that when we meet next month to discuss the (ADP) report for February's data that we'll be talking about an overall number that actually is positive." (Reporting by Burton Frierson; Editing by Padraic Cassidy)