US labor market weaker than expected: stock indices near record high

On Friday, investors put aside the recent concerns about interest rates and inflation. Instead, some US indices are near records.

A street sign on Wall Street in New York City. Photo: dpa

Dusseldorf. The US labor market report for September ensures a good mood on the markets. The major US indices were up on Friday evening and sometimes reached records during the day.

The Dow Jones of standard values ​​was up 0.6 percent in the evening at 51,160 points, after days earlier it had temporarily fallen to its lowest level since mid-June.

The broad S&P 500 rose by 0.7 percent to 7,720 points.

After its initial record, the Nasdaq technology exchange remains up 1.1 percent at 27,175 points. The chip manufacturer Nvidia is particularly contributing to this.

The Nasdaq 100, a reflection of the 100 non-financial companies with the highest market capitalization, recently gained 0.9 percent to 30,789 points. He also previously achieved a record.

Investors are likely to look particularly at the latest employment figures. Outside agriculture, only 29,000 new jobs were created in September, the US government announced on Friday. Economists surveyed by Reuters had expected an increase of 90,000 jobs. At the same time, the unemployment rate climbed to 4.2 percent. In August, the labor market was still unexpectedly robust. However, employment growth in the previous two months was revised downwards by a total of 60,000 jobs.

“Today’s data argues for patience, not panic,” Seema Shah, chief strategist at Principal Asset Management, told CNBC. The strategist means patience with regard to US interest rate policy.

Less speculation about interest rate increases

Disappointing labor market data is dampening speculation on the financial markets that the US Federal Reserve (Fed) will raise interest rates further. The central bank has a dual mandate, which obliges it to maintain full employment and stable prices.