U.S. stocks were near all-time highs on Friday as investors weighed the June jobs report, which plays into calculations of a Federal Reserve interest rate cut.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) was little changed ahead of the report after hitting a record high in a short session on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) also moved above the flatline. All three gauges were closed Thursday for the Fourth of July holiday.
The U.S. economy added 206,000 jobs in June, more than Wall Street had expected by 190,000. But the unemployment rate unexpectedly rose to 4.1%, the highest level since November 2021, in another signal the jobs market continues to cool.
Signs of looser conditions in labor data earlier this week reinforced the view that inflation will continue to ease, setting the stage for the central bank to cut interest rates from their current two-decade highs. Traders are now pricing in a nearly 75% chance of a cut in September CME’s FedWatch tool.
Investors were puzzled by Friday’s jobs data to decide whether the slowdown in monthly job growth reflects a normalization in the labor market, shaking off the pandemic, or early signs of a broader economic slowdown.
Elsewhere, Labour’s landslide victory in the UK elections caught the attention of investors, especially as the US presidential election approaches, monitoring political risk. With some major donors urging President Joe Biden to step aside, polls are taking aim at Donald Trump’s growing lead and what that means for markets.
On the corporate front, Samsung Electronics ( 005930.KS ) reported quarterly profit rose 15 times from a year ago, sending shares buoyed by the AI boom to a three-year high.
Crypto-linked stocks Coinbase Global (COIN) and Marathon Digital (MARA) lost about 6% in morning trade as Bitcoin (BTC-USD) hit its lowest level against the dollar since February.
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