Major US stock indices rose on Thursday as Treasury yields eased after a softer-than-expected June employment report tempered hopes for interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.
At 9:48 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 447.72 points, or 0.86%, to 52,752.96, the S&P 500 gained 49.84 points, or 0.67%, to 7,533.51 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 146.99 points, or 0.56%, to 26,187.02.
At the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 90.0 points, or 0.17%, to 52,395.22. The S&P 500 rose 11.9 points, or 0.16%, to 7,495.14, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 7.4 points, or 0.03%, to 26,047.382.
Following the jobs data, the yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.47%.
US job growth slows
The United States recorded weaker-than-expected job growth in June, with fresh government data indicating that the labour market is beginning to lose momentum ahead of the midterm elections, a key political test for President Donald Trump and the Republican Party.
Total non-farm payroll employment increased by 57,000 during the month, while the unemployment rate edged down to 4.2%, according to figures released on Thursday by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
The latest employment report comes after several months of fluctuating labour market performance, during which hiring alternated between periods of expansion and slowdown. Although the previous three months had initially appeared to show stronger job creation, Thursday’s report revised those figures lower.
The BLS said payroll gains for both April and May were revised downward by a combined 74,000 jobs, indicating that hiring was weaker than previously estimated.
“While the headline may be negative — slowing job growth — there could be a silver lining to markets as it could force some of the more hawkish Fed governors to reconsider quickly raising rates to fight inflation,” said Chris Zaccarelli of Northlight Asset Management.
Key Stock Movers
Bending Spoons shares fell 3.9% a day after the Vimeo owner gained 40% in its debut on the Nasdaq.
Shares of memory maker Micron Technology rose 2% and Advanced Micro Devices fell 1.5%.
National Beverage, the company behind LaCroix sparkling waters, climbed 8.8% after announcing that it will pay a special dividend of $3.25 for each share that investors hold.
Bullion
Gold extended its gains on Thursday, after weaker-than-expected US non-farm payrolls data.
As of 9:00 a.m. EDT (1300 GMT), spot gold was up 2.4% at $4,126.97 per ounce. US gold futures inched 1.4% higher to $4,139.20.
“The lower-than-expected jobs number portends to less likelihood of potential rate hikes later this year. As we know, gold has a tendency to perform better in lower interest rate environments,” said David Meger, director of metals trading at High Ridge Futures.
“Hence, we saw a significant rally in the gold market on the back of that,” he added.
Among other metals, spot silver rose 4% to $61.53 per ounce, platinum gained 2.3% to $1,613.35, and palladium added 3.8% to $1,256.50.
Crude Oil
Oil prices fell on Thursday as concerns over supply disruptions eased after Qatar said Iran and the US had made progress in talks over the Strait of Hormuz.
At 1316 GMT, Brent futures were 91 cents, or 1.3% lower, at $70.66 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate crude fell $1.04, or 1.5%, to $67.54 a barrel.
