The unexpected pickups in US hiring and wages last month increase chances the Federal Reserve will hold interest rates high for longer and potentially keep the door open to an 11th straight hike in June. Nonfarm payrolls rose 253,000 last month, a Bureau of Labor Statistics report showed Friday. Economists had expected an increase of 185,000. The unemployment rate fell back to a multi-decade low of 3.4%. Fed Chair Jerome Powell, speaking in a press conference Wednesday after officials wrapped up their May 2-3 meeting, said the labor market remains “extremely” tight and is one of the data points he and his colleagues ... (full story)