A STRONG employment report on Friday calmed fears of a recession (Shutterstock).
(Shutterstock).

Friday’s report on hiring showed a robust increase in new employment across the United States and a low unemployment rate of 3.6 percent.

According to The New York Times, the Department of Labor said that employers added 372,000 jobs in June and that the jobless rate was close to being the lowest in a half-century.

Observers credited the statistics as evidence that a recession was not on its way, but fretted that the growing work force might further fuel inflationary pressures.

Former Japan PM assassinated

SHINZO ABE

Shinzo Abe, a former prime minister of Japan was fatally shot Friday by an assassin.

According to The Associated Press, Abe, 67, was making a political speech when killed in the western Japanese city of Nara. Arrested was Tetsuya Yamagami, 41, who used what police describe as a “homemade” gun.

Firearm homicides are very rare in Japan, as that nation has some of the strictest gun control laws in the world.

Sports: Angels, Dodgers land two All-Star spots

The Los Angeles Angels and Los Angeles Dodgers each will have two starters in the 2023 All-Star Game on July 19 at Dodger Stadium.

Shohei Ohtani will be the DH starter and Mike Trout has a spot in the American League outfield.

For the Blue Crew, Trea Turner will be the National League shortstop and Mookie Betts has a place in the outfield.

The pitchers have yet to be selected.

Will Smith singled in Trea Turner in the bottom of the 10th inning Friday night as the Los Angeles Dodgers pulled off two late rallies to earn a 4-3 win at home over the Chicago Cubs.

Trailing 3-0 after five and a half innings, the Blue Crew scored one run each in the sixth, seventh and ninth innings to tie the contest up. With the victory, the Dodgers are 54-39 and lead the National League West by six games over the San Diego Padres.

It was their fifth consecutive win.

Once again the bullpen proved to be the weak spot in the Los Angeles Angels’ lineup, as the Baltimore Orioles rallied for three runs in the bottom of the ninth to beat the Halos 5-4 at Camden Yards on Friday night.

The Angels got star performances from their two newly-named All-Stars but it wasn’t enough. Mike Trout hit a three-run home run in the third to give his team a 3-0 lead. He finished the night 3-for-5 with three RBIs and one run scored. It was his 24th homer of the season.

Shohei Ohtani drilled his 19th homer and had three hits and an RBI.

But the O’s rallied as Trey Mancini singled home the tying and winning runs with two out in the ninth to hand the Orange County team its sixth loss in seven games.

Weather: Nice and warm for us

A combination of warm weather and some shady clouds could make the next few days especially pleasant for the West Orange County area. The forecast calls for a daytime high on Saturday of 84 with an overnight low of 64. Sunday will be similar at 83/64, but partly cloudy conditions will develop and remain for several days. Monday will be a bit cooler (81/62) and Tuesday cooler still (79/63).