US stocks were down modestly Friday afternoon, with all three major benchmarks still on track for weekly gains, after stronger-than-expected June jobs data.
How are stocks trading?
-
Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA,
-0.19%
fell 86 points, or 0.3%, to 31,298. -
The S&P 500 SPX declined 17 points, or 0.4%, to 3,885.
-
Nasdaq Composite Comp,
-0.27%
slid 69 points, or 0.6%, to 11,552.
What’s driving markets?
Stocks were down early afternoon, turning lower in a choppy trading session after Friday’s jobs report showed more robust growth in the American labor market last month than had been expected.
“The labor market is a lagging indicator for where the economy is,” said Matt Stucky, senior portfolio manager at Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co., in a phone interview Friday. “The risk of a mild recession is still pretty high here.”
The stock market is choppy as investors weigh the latest jobs data against fears the Federal Reserve will continue with large interest rates hikes to cool the economy as it seeks to tame high inflation.
The US created 372,000 new jobs in June, substantially higher than the 250,000 expected by economists polled by The Wall Street Journal.
See: US creates 372,000 jobs in June. Strong labor market a bulwark against recession
“Job gains in June slowed modestly month-over-month but were much better than expected,” said David Kelly, chief global strategist at JP Morgan Asset Management, in an emailed note Friday.
“It’s worth emphasizing that employment is generally a lagging economic indicator so this morning’s report does not eliminate the risk of a recession starting soon,” he said. “However, with labor demand still near record highs, this suggests that the next economic downturn could be a relatively mild one for workers.”
All three major stocks benchmarks are heading for weekly gains, with the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite leading the way up. The Nasdaq is on track for a weekly rise of 3.8%, while the Dow is on pace to advance 0.7% and the S&P 500 is heading for a gain of 167%, according to FactSet data, at last check.
Read: Why a rally in growth stocks could signal ‘peak’ Fed hawkishness has passed
“We’re still in the midst of positive momentum from earlier in the week, so when the selloff failed, the next tactic was to move higher. Nothing else really changed, ”said Steve Sosnick, chief strategist at Interactive Brokers, in comments to MarketWatch.
The S&P 500 index has enjoyed four consecutive days of gains this week, its best winning run since the end of March. If stocks finish higher today, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite would achieve their longest winning streak since November 2021. The Nasdaq finished an impressive 11-day winning streak on Nov. 8, while the S&P 500 finished an 8-day streak on the same day.
Read: Markets signal recession threat: Why stocks are taking it in stride – for now
Still, the S&P 500 is down more than 18% since the start of the year, as investors await the bulk of the company’s second-quarter earnings reports in the coming weeks.
Single-stock movers
-
Caesars Entertainment Inc.
CZR,
-4.74%
was down 5.1%. -
Twitter Inc. TWTR,
-4.28%
shares we are taking a hit following a Washington Post report that led investors to suspect that Elon Musk might be trying to back out of his deal to take the company private. Shares fell 4.5% on Friday. -
PayPal Holdings
PYPL,
-2.09%
shares fell 2.5%. -
McKesson Corporation
MCK,
+ 3.74%
and Centene Inc.
CNC,
+ 3.05%
were both up more than 3%. -
Enphase Energy Inc.
ENPH,
+ 3.48%
and Dish Network Corporation
DISH,
+ 1.14%
were among the best performers on the S&P 500 Friday afternoon, with shares of Dish up 1.7% and Enphase shares climbing 3.4%. -
Tesla Inc.
TSLA,
+ 2.62%
was up 2%, helping the tech-heavy Nasdaq.
How are other assets faring?
-
The US 10-year Treasury yield BX: TMUBMUSD10Y was up 8 basis points to 3.091%. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.
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The ICE US Dollar Index, a measure of the buck’s strength against a basket of rivals, DXY was little changed at around 107, leaving it close to a fresh 19-year high.
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In oil futures, West Texas Intermediate crude for August delivery CLQ22,
+ 1.97%
was up 1.6% at $ 104.40 a barrel after seeing volatile moves on Friday. Gold GC00 for August delivery GCQ22,
+ 0.14%
was little changed at $ 1,739.80 an ounce. -
Bitcoin BTCUSD was down 0.4% at 21,687.
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In European equities, the STOXX Europe 600 Index closed 0.5% higher Friday to book a weekly gain of 2.45%. London’s FTSE 100 Index ended 0.1% higher Friday, advancing 0.4% for the week.
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In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index NIK,
+ 0.10%
pared its advance following news of the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, closing 0.1% higher Friday. That brought its weekly gain to 2.2%. China’s Shanghai Composite SHCOMP,
-0.25%
ended 0.2% lower for a weekly decline of 0.9%, despite reports Beijing is considering further fiscal stimulus.
IeJamie Chisholm contributed to this article.
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