New York:U.S. stocks ended the week on a positive note, with major indices closing higher on Friday. A weaker-than-expected jobs report for September has fueled speculation that the Federal Reserve might refrain from raising interest rates in the upcoming month.
According to Namibia Press Agency, the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 250 points, or 0.49 percent, to reach 51,176.96. The S&P 500 increased by 0.7 percent, adding 56.27 points to settle at 7,722.72. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite surged by 1.19 percent, gaining 319.27 points to close at 27,190.86, having set an all-time high earlier in the day.
Out of the 11 primary sectors in the S&P 500, ten finished higher, with notable gains in consumer discretionary, materials, and technology, each rising by about 1 percent or more. The health care sector was the only one to post a decline.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported an increase of 29,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in September, which was considerably below expectations. Additionally, the unemployment rate rose to 4.2 percent.
Following the release of the jobs data, U.S. Treasury yields experienced volatility. The 10-year yield initially dropped to 5.16 percent before climbing back towards 5.3 percent by the end of the day. The two-year yield remained around 4.73 percent, while the 30-year yield was steady near 5.63 percent.
In energy markets, oil prices decreased after the Group of Seven nations and the European Union agreed to release 100 million barrels of crude and diesel from emergency reserves. This decision was part of a French proposal to combine 50 million barrels of diesel from the EU with 50 million barrels of crude from the International Energy Agency. West Texas Intermediate crude fell by 1.76 dollars to settle at 91.11 dollars a barrel, while Brent crude recovered slightly to trade near 102.25 dollars.
Jeff Schulze, head investment strategist at the Franklin Templeton Institute, stated, "Today's soft payroll report demonstrates that the labor market is simmering, not boiling, which should bolster the case for the Fed to remain on hold at the October meeting."
The chances of a rate hike at the Fed's October 27-28 meeting have decreased to about 22 percent, down from approximately 64 percent a week earlier, according to CME FedWatch.
On the corporate front, Nike saw a decline of about 3.6 percent after reporting fiscal first-quarter revenue of 11.21 billion dollars, which missed estimates and was down 4 percent year-over-year. The company also projected a drop in full-year revenue by high single digits and announced job cuts. In contrast, Teradyne's shares rose by 8 percent, driven by strong chip-testing demand and a positive outlook for the semiconductor sector.
Tesla shares increased by 4.65 percent despite a 2 percent decrease in third-quarter deliveries. Nvidia, AMD, CrowdStrike, and Palo Alto Networks reached all-time highs, while Seagate and Western Digital fell following reports of increased hard-disk-drive supply from Toshiba.