Stocks soared on Friday as investors welcomed a key monthly jobs report that showed hiring remains robust in the US economy. The Middle East crisis and a return to work at US ports also stayed in high focus.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) added 0.9%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) gained more than 300 points, or 0.8%, eking out a new record. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) moved 1.2% higher.
The September jobs report massively overshot expectations, as the US economy added 254,000 jobs last month and the unemployment rate fell to 4.1%. Altogether, the report showed the labor market remains robust, even amid signs it has cooled. Yahoo Finance’s Josh Schafer has more details on the report here.
The jobs data swung forecasts toward a smaller interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve next month. Nearly 99% of bets are on a 25 basis point cut, as opposed to a 50 basis point cut, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.
Read more: What the Fed rate cut means for bank accounts, CDs, loans, and credit cards
Stocks recouped their weekly losses, as the markets have shown some resilience in the face of a rough week of worrying headlines. The S&P 500 and Dow closed out weekly gains, both sitting within striking distance of their record highs.
In recent days, a huge port strike, devastation from Hurricane Helene, and the prospect of a wider Mideast conflict brought the potential to lift prices and fan inflation.
In a welcome move, the US dockworkers strike ended after a tentative wage deal was reached late Thursday, though some issues remain to be settled by later this year.
On the downside, a barrage of strikes by Israel on Beirut kept alive the Mideast worries that have driven up oil prices. Western leaders warned about “uncontrollable escalation” as investors waited to see whether Israel would attack Iran’s oil facilities — a move President Biden said is under discussion.
Oil saw its biggest weekly gain in over a year amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran. Brent (BZ=F) and West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) futures pared gains during Friday’s session after Biden sought to discourage Israel from targeting Iranian oil fields.
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Dow, Nasdaq, S&P 500 rally as blowout jobs report gives hope of soft landing
Stocks rallied on Friday to close near session highs after a stronger-than-expected monthly jobs report gave investors hope that the US economy could be headed toward a soft landing.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) gained 0.9%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) added about 340 points, or 0.8%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) moved 1.2% higher.
Financials (XLF) and Consumer Discretionary (XLY) stocks led the gains on Friday.
The hot jobs report was the first monthly labor data read since the Federal Reserve lowered interest rates in September by 50 basis points.
Next week, investors will get a read of last month’s inflation data for more clues on how big the central bank’s next expected interest rate cut may be.
Oil saw its biggest weekly gain in over a year amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran.
Brent (BZ=F) and West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) futures pared gains during Friday’s session after President Biden sought to discourage Israel from going after Iranian oil fields.
Oil pares gains as Biden discourages Israel from targeting Iranian crude fields
Oil futures pared gains on Friday but still notched their biggest weekly increase in more than a year as President Biden aimed to discourage Tel Aviv from targeting Iran’s crude facilities following Tehran’s recent missile assault against Israel.
West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) advanced less than 1% to settle at $74.38 per barrel after soaring as much as 2.5% during the session. US crude futures still closed out the week up more than 9%, their best week since March 2023.
Brent (BZ=F), the international benchmark price, also advanced less than 1% to settle at $78.09 per barrel on Friday.
Oil pared session gains after President Biden commented on whether Israel’s retaliation against Iran will involve targeting the country’s petroleum infrastructure.
“If I were in their shoes, I would think of other alternatives than attacking oil fields,” Biden told reporters at the White House on Friday afternoon.
Read more here.
Tesla stock had a rough week — here’s what’s next for the EV maker
Tesla (TSLA) stock was on pace to end the week down 4% on Friday as the EV maker missed Wall Street estimates on its third quarter deliveries, issued a recall and discontinued a lower-priced model.
As Yahoo Finance’s Laura Bratton reports, shares of the EV maker have been on a roller-coaster ride this year, plummeting after a dismal first quarter earnings report in April, then recovering in July when Tesla fared better than expected in the following earnings period thanks to price cuts.
Now, all eyes are on Tesla’s upcoming robotaxi event, which will either cement Elon Musk’s reputation as an AI leader — or cast doubt on his lofty goals.
Read more here.
Oil hovers near session highs, on pace for biggest weekly gain in over a year
Oil was on pace for its biggest weekly increase in more than a year on Friday over concerns that Israel could target Iran’s crude facilities in response to Tehran’s recent missile assault.
West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) rose more than 2% midday to hover above $75 per barrel. Brent (BZ=F), the international benchmark price, advanced nearly 2% on to trade above $79 per barrel.
US futures are up more than 10% for the week, while Brent is up more than 9% during the same period.
Hot jobs report doesn’t change Fed’s rate ‘calculus’: Goolsbee
Yahoo Finance’s Jennifer Schonberger reports:
Chicago Fed president Austan Goolsbee doesn’t think a hot jobs report released Friday will alter the downward path of interest rates over the next 12 to 18 months.
“I don’t think that calculus changes,” he said in an interview with Yahoo Finance.
By the end of 2025, “I think we will be a fair bit lower if conditions continue like this,” he added.
The Fed last month cut rates for the first time in more than four years, starting with a jumbo-sized 50 basis point cut designed to get ahead of any weakness in the labor market.
But new data out Friday from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed new strength instead.
Read more here.
Stocks rise in afternoon trading
Fears that the Federal Reserve may have acted too slowly to ease interest rates were quieted on Friday after the September jobs report signaled hiring remains robust in the US economy.
Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed the labor market added 254,000 payrolls in September, more additions than the 150,000 expected by economists. And the unemployment rate fell to 4.1%, down from August’s 4.2%.
The robust jobs data appeared to confirm the observations of Fed Chair Jerome Powell that the economy is in “solid condition” and bolstered his contention that the Fed isn’t in a rush to lower interest rates.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) put on about 0.4%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) added 0.3%, paring bigger gains soon after the open. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) moved 0.6% higher.
Boeing stock sees brief reprieve after successful rocket launch with Lockheed
Boeing (BA) shares edged up as much as 1.4% Friday after its joint venture with Lockheed Martin (LMT), United Launch Alliance, successfully completed the second launch of its new Vulcan rocket.
Boeing and Lockheed are vying against Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin to become the US government’s go-to contractor for national security space missions. The US Space Force recently selected the three companies to compete for contracts worth $5.6 billion between 2025 and 2029. United Launch Alliance’s contract with the US Space Force for its Phase Two program, which runs through 2027, is worth $4.5 billion. ULA would use Vulcan for two space security missions in 2025.
Lockheed shares were flat Friday. Boeing stock pared initial gains midday.
Boeing stock has plummeted more than 40% as the company has dealt with the fallout of its door plug blowout fiasco in January. Safety issues and production delays have plagued the aircraft manufacturer, among a myriad of problems. Some 33,000 Boeing workers also recently went on strike, seeking competitive pay and benefits.
Tesla’s highly anticipated robotaxi event arrives next week
Investors yearning for validation that Tesla isn’t merely a car company will receive a reality check on Thursday, as the electric vehicle maker plans to unveil its ambitious robotaxi concept vehicle.
For months, CEO Elon Musk has touted his expanded vision for Tesla, which he sees as a platform for advanced AI technology, rather than just a seller of vehicles. Musk has described the robotaxi endeavor as a huge development in autonomous rideasharing. Tesla would provide a fleet of driverless vehicles for users to summon for their transportation needs.
The debut for the concept was originally scheduled for August but was delayed until Oct. 10.
Tesla bull Dan Ives sees the event as a defining moment for the company.
“We believe Robotaxi Day will be seminal and historical day for Musk and Tesla and marks a new chapter of growth around autonomous, FSD, and AI future at Tesla. We continue to believe Tesla is the most undervalued AI name in the market and we expect Musk & Co. to unveil some ‘game changing’ autonomous technology at this event next week.”
Spirit Airlines stock drops 25% amid reports of potential bankruptcy, other airlines rise
Spirit Airlines (SAVE) shares plummeted on Friday following reports from the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg that suggest the budget carrier may be nearing bankruptcy.
The Journal said late Thursday that Spirit has been in talks with bondholders over the terms of a possible bankruptcy filing. Bloomberg reported Friday that Spirit’s efforts to secure a rescue deal with bondholders to restructure its debt — and hence, avoid bankruptcy — have stalled.
Spirit’s shares have tumbled nearly 90% since the start of the year, falling sharply after a federal judge blocked its merger with JetBlue Airways (JBLU) over antitrust concerns. The carrier reported a loss of $193 million in its most recent quarterly earnings report.
As Spirit’s stock fell to an all-time low of $1.40 each, other airlines saw their share prices rise. JetBlue stock surged more than 15% Friday. Frontier Airlines (ULCC) shares jumped 21%. Delta Air Lines (DAL), American Airlines (AAL), and United Airlines (UAL) shares rose by percentages in the low single digits.
Stocks trending in morning trading
Here are some of the stocks leading Yahoo Finance’s trending tickers page during morning trading on Friday:
Rivian (RIVN): Shares of the electric vehicle maker fell 7% Friday morning after the company cut its production forecast for the year and fell short of delivery expectations because of slowing growth in demand and a parts shortage.
Spirit Airlines (SAVE): The budget carrier fell nearly 25% Friday after the Wall Street Journal reported that the company has been in discussions with bondholders over a potential bankruptcy filing following its failed merger with JetBlue (JBLU).
Meta (META): The social media company rose 0.5% following an announcement that it has developed a new artificial intelligence model, in competition with OpenAI, that can generate video and audio based on prompts from users. Dubbed Movie Gen, the model will also allow users to edit existing videos through text inputs. according to a company blog post.
CVS (CVS): Shares of the pharmacy chain rose nearly 3% following an upgrade from TD Cowen. Its analysts moved the stock from a Hold to a Buy, citing changes to its Medicare Advantage plan for 2025 that CVS announced earlier this week.
Stocks rise after massive jobs report beat
Investors embraced a hugely encouraging jobs reportt Friday that showed hiring remains robust in the US economy.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) put on 0.7%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) added roughly 0.6%. And the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) moved 1.1% higher.
The labor market added 254,000 payrolls in September, more additions than the 150,000 expected by economists, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The unemployment rate fell to 4.1%, from 4.2% in August.
Markets move to price in less Fed easing after strong jobs report
A far stronger-than-expected September jobs report has tilted markets to price in fewer interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve in 2024.
Following the report, markets were pricing in a roughly 10% chance the Fed cuts interest rates by half a percentage point in November, down from a 53% chance seen a week ago, per the CME FedWatch Tool.
Robert Sockin, Citi senior global economist, told Yahoo Finance that the better-than-expected jobs report makes it less likely that the Fed moves with the “urgency” it did at its September meeting, when the central bank cut interest rates by half a percentage point.
“This pushes the Fed out a lot,” he said, adding that it’s uncertain the Fed will make another 50 basis point cut again this year.
“Looking at the labour market strength evident in September’s employment report, the real debate at the Fed should be about whether to loosen monetary policy at all,” Capital Economics chief North America economist Paul Ashworth wrote in a note to clients on Friday. “Any hopes of a [50 basis point] cut are long gone.”
Read more: Jobs, inflation, and the Fed: How they’re all related
September jobs report crushes expectations as US economy adds 254,000 jobs, unemployment rate falls to 4.1%
The US labor market added far more jobs than projected in September while the unemployment rate unexpectedly ticked lower, reflecting a far stronger picture of the jobs market than Wall Street had expected.
Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released Friday showed the labor market added 254,000 payrolls in September, more additions than the 150,000 expected by economists.
Meanwhile, the unemployment rate fell to 4.1%, from 4.2% in August. September job additions came in higher than the revised 159,000 added in August.
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