US stocks end mostly down as market weighs jobs data
The S&P 500 ended lower on Friday, weighed down by Tesla and other technology-related stocks after a solid jobs report torpedoed recent optimism that the Federal Reserve might let up on its aggressive campaign to reign in decades-high inflation. Data showed US employers hired far more workers than expected in July, the 19th straight month of payroll expansion. The unemployment rate fell to a pre-pandemic low of 3.5 percent. The report added to recent data painting an upbeat picture of the world's largest economy after it contracted in the first half of the year. That deflated investors' expectations that the Fed might soft-pedal on its series of rate hikes aimed at cooling the economy. Tesla tumbled 6.6 percent and weighed heavily on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. Facebook-owner Meta lost 2 percent and Amazon fell 1.2 percent, also pulling down the index. US Treasury yields climbed as odds increased of a 75-basis-point interest rate hike in September. That helped bank stocks, with JPMorgan rising 3 percent, and helping the Dow Jones stay in positive territory. Focus now shifts to inflation data due next week, with US annual consumer prices expected to jump by 8.7 percent in July after a 9.1 percent rise in June. The S&P 500 declined 0.16 percent to end the session at 4,145 points. The Nasdaq declined 0.50 percent to 12,657, while the Dow Jones rose 0.23 percent to 32,803. (Reuters)