Americans reporting new-job starts fell to 49.7 from 50.5 last month, and once that figure falls below 50, it reveals that more employees are losing jobs than starting jobs, according to the Consumer Reports Index, which analyzes the number of Americans starting new jobs with those losing jobs over the last 30 days.

This marks a decline in Americans starting new jobs for a second straight month, and it is now at its lowest level in nine months, the research finds. Still, job loss numbers are higher, though only slightly at 4.6 percent from 4.4 percent.

The Consumer Reports Index's June results also show that retail spending is struggling. The Index's past 30-day retail measure has extended its fall to a fifth straight month. The measure now stands at its lowest level since Consumer Reports first measured it in April 2009 — falling to 8.9 from 10.6 percent last month, and from 12.0 percent last year at this time. Planned consumer purchasing over the next 30 days (7.0 percent), reflecting June activity, was also down from the prior month (8.3 percent) as well as a year ago (9.0 percent).