Economy Adds Disappointing 18,000 Jobs in June

      WASHINGTON (AP) - Hiring slowed to a near-standstill last month.
Employers added the fewest jobs in nine months and the unemployment
rate rose to 9.2 percent.

      The Labor Department says the economy generated only 18,000 net
jobs in June. And the number of jobs added in May was revised down
to 25,000.

      High gas prices and supply-chain disruptions stemming from the
Japan crisis and the weak housing market have slowed the economy.
Average hourly wages declined last month. After-tax incomes,
adjusted for inflation, have been flat this year.

      Businesses added the fewest jobs in more than a year.
Governments cut 39,000 jobs.

      Hiring has slowed sharply in the past two months. The economy
added an average of 215,000 jobs per month in the previous three
months.

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