The strong employment figures released Friday keep the Federal Reserve firmly on track to raise interest rates by a half-percentage point at its meeting in two weeks and again in late July to cool high inflation.
Employers added 390,000 jobs in May, the Labor Department said Friday. The unemployment rate held steady at 3.6% as the number of people seeking work increased. Wages rose 0.3% from April, continuing a deceleration that -- if it is sustained -- could make Fed officials slightly less anxious about an overheating labor market.
