Business

Low prices, weak hiring raise odds of Fed action

By Christopher Rugaber
Published June 14, 2012 8:52pm ET
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Low prices, weak hiring raise odds of Fed action
In this Wednesday, June 13, 2012, Tammy Syniec, right, reads the list of employers participating at a job fair expo in Anaheim, Calif. More Americans sought unemployment aid last week, suggesting hiring remains sluggish. The Labor Department said Thursday June 14, 2012 that weekly unemployment benefit applications rose 6,000 to a seasonally adjusted 386,000, an increase from an upwardly revised 380,000 the previous week. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) | Jae C. Hong

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. job market is flagging, and consumer prices are barely rising. The picture sketched by data released Thursday has made some economists predict the Federal Reserve will announce some new step next week to boost the economy.

Applications for unemployment benefits rose last week, pointing to a fourth straight month of sluggish hiring in June. And consumer prices were pulled down in May by a plunge in gas prices.

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