Job Outlook Rises as Reports Suggest More Hiring

By Christopher S. Rugaber

WASHINGTON -- June may turn out to have been a good month to find a job after all.

A private report said businesses hired twice as many workers as economists had expected. Applications for unemployment benefits have reached a seven-week low. And more small businesses say they plan to increase hiring in the next three months, a trade association said.

The brighter outlook for jobs emerged one day before the government will issue the June employment report, regarded as the most reliable gauge of job creation.