In New York trading on the 7th, the S&P 500 index hit a fresh all-time high, the dollar fell against major currencies, and Treasury yields declined after the July US employment report came in unexpectedly weak. The Labor Department reported that nonfarm payrolls fell by 23,000 in July, defying market expectations for an increase, while the unemployment rate edged down to 4.1 percent. However, the labor force participation rate slipped to 61.4 percent, near its lowest level in about five and a half years. The data pushed back expectations for a Federal Reserve rate hike in September, with the CME FedWatch Tool showing the probability of a September hike dropping to around 44 percent. The dollar fell 0.57 percent against the yen to 157.56 yen, while the euro rose 0.39 percent against the dollar to 1.1568 dollars. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of major currencies, slipped 0.44 percent to 99.50. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell 1.44 basis points to 4.656 percent, and the 2-year yield dropped 4.35 basis points to 4.202 percent. The S&P 500 closed 0.62 percent higher at 7,757.64, posting a weekly gain of 3.58 percent, its biggest since mid-April. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.30 percent to 26,690.62, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.28 percent to 54,036.93. Gold futures rose 2.3 percent to 4,399.70 dollars an ounce, a seven-week high, while crude oil futures extended gains amid Middle East uncertainty, with West Texas Intermediate crude up 89 cents at 78.18 dollars a barrel.
Weak jobs report lowers odds of Fed rate hike, pushing policy rate expectations down.
Weak jobs report lowers yields as rate hike expectations recede.
Weak jobs report lowers yields as rate hike expectations recede.
