The Dow rose 0.32% on Thursday while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 fell, as a softer-than-expected June jobs report eased worries that the Federal Reserve might hike rates soon. A second-day selloff in chip and technology shares dragged the two broader indexes lower.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 162.66 points, or 0.32%, to 52,470.59 on Thursday, splitting from the rest of Wall Street. The S&P 500 lost 54.40 points, or 0.72%, to 7,429.31, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 403.04 points, or 1.54%, to 25,636.99.
The Dow traded higher through the afternoon, on track for its fourth consecutive weekly gain — its longest such streak since October 2024. The U.S. market will be closed on Friday for the Independence Day holiday.
Chip selloff pulls the Nasdaq down
Technology shares slipped for a second day, and the Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index fell 6.7% as chipmaker stocks sold off for a second session. Reuters reported that many investors were cashing in on the sector’s lofty valuations.
Tesla added to the pressure. Its shares fell 7.8% even though the carmaker posted second-quarter deliveries above estimates, having risen sharply earlier in the week on optimism ahead of the report.
Soft jobs data eases rate-hike fears
The move followed a softer payrolls print. The economy added 57,000 jobs last month, far below economists’ estimates for a rise of 110,000, while the unemployment rate was 4.2%, in line with expectations of 4.3%.
Because of this, expectations for an interest-rate hike from the Fed eased. According to CME FedWatch, hike expectations for the September meeting dimmed to 55% from 64.1%.
The softer report does not fully clear the picture on inflation. Adam Sarhan, chief executive at 50 Park Investments, said the report “It just takes the pressure off the Fed to raise rates in the short term.”
Source: Reuters
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