Fed survey: US companies see weaker job growth

Rising joblessness: A hiring sign in Soho, New York. The Fed aims to achieve a soft landing for the economy, where growth slows gradually while keeping the unemployment rate relatively low. — Bloomberg

WASHINGTON: US economic activity expanded more slowly from the middle of July through late August and businesses pulled back on hiring, signals that underscore why the Federal Reserve (Fed) is set to begin to lower interest rates later this month.

The US central bank’s latest temperature check on the health of the economy also showed that inflation pressures increased at a modest pace, with input costs viewed by all but one of the Fed’s 12 districts as generally easing.