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Stocks closed lower on Friday after a weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs report gave way to worries about a slowing U.S. economy, even as expectations for a Federal Reserve rate cut were solidified.
The Dow Jones Industrials gave back 220.43 points to conclude Friday at 45,400.86. On the week, the index gave up 0.3%.
The S&P 500 index subsided 20.58 points to 6,481.50, edging up 0.1% on the week.
The NASDAQ lost 7.31 points on the day, to 21,700.39, but gathered 1.1% on the week.
JPMorgan and Wells Fargo paced the negative reversal on fears a slowing economy may hit loan growth. Industrials Boeing and GE Aerospace also got hit, as a troubled economy could dampen order growth.
However, Broadcom was a standout performer, with the stock popping 9.4% on the heels of the chipmaker’s latest quarterly results beating Wall Street’s expectations.
Nvidia shares dropped 2.7%, as Broadcom’s strong results may signal there’s growing competition for the AI darling. Palantir, another artificial intelligence favorite that’s been under pressure of late, slid about 2%.
The August jobs report saw the U.S. economy add 22,000 jobs on the month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. That’s below the 75,000 that economists polled by Dow Jones had expected. The unemployment rate also rose to 4.3%, in line with expectations.
Traders are hoping the reading will lend support to the Fed’s case to go ahead with an expected rate cut at its September policy meeting. Fed funds futures trading suggests that benchmark interest rates will likely move a quarter-percentage-point lower when the central bank makes a decision on Sept.17,
Prices for 10-year Treasury leaped Friday, lowering yields to 4.09% from Thursday’s 4.16%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices stumbled $1.44 to $62.04 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices vaulted $40.60 to $3,647.30 U.S. an ounce.
