US stocks end mixed on weak jobs data

Benchmark US indices closed the week mixed on Friday, September 3, after weak jobs data raised uncertainty about the economic recovery. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained as the weaker-than-expected job data eased fears over Fed’s tapering plan.

The S&P 500 was down 0.03% to 4,535.43. The Dow Jones fell 0.21% to 35,369.09. The NASDAQ Composite rose 0.21% to 15,363.52, and the small-cap Russell 2000 was down 0.52% to 2,292.05.

Last week, Fed chief Jerome Powell had reiterated that the bank would start withdrawing monetary support when the economic recovery reaches a modest pace. A jobs data released by the Labor Department on Friday showed the unemployment rate fell marginally by 0.2% to 5.2% in August.

About 235,000 jobs were added in the non-farm sector, far below the 720,000 projected by analysts interviewed by Wall Street Journal. In July, the economy had added 1.05 million jobs.

Technology and basic materials stocks were the biggest gainers on S&P 500 Friday. Energy and financial stocks were the laggards. Seven of the 11 index segments stayed in the red.

Stocks of ride-hailing company DiDi Global Inc. (DIDI) rose 2.04% after an investment proposal from Beijing's municipal government. The investment would give control of the company to the state entities, people familiar with the matter said.

Software company MongoDB, Inc. (MDB) stock gained 24.74% in intraday trading a day after it reported strong quarterly earnings. Its gross profit was US$138 million in Q2 of fiscal 2022.

Forte Biosciences, Inc. (FBRX) stock declined by over 82% after the company announced that its Phase II clinical trial for a skin disease treatment came to a halt. Stocks of DocuSign, Inc. (DOCU) gained 4.85% a day after it reported a 50% revenue growth YoY to US$511.8 million.

In the technology sector, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (TSM) gained 2.33%, NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) rose 2.17%, and Salesforce.com, Inc. (CRM) rose 1.08%. Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) and ServiceNow, Inc. (NOW) increased by 1.27% and 2.95%, respectively.

In basic material stocks, BHP Group (BHP) rose 2.05%, Rio Tinto Group (RIO) rose 1.18%, and Newmont Corporation (NEM) gained 2.32%. Barrick Gold Corporation rose by 2.92%, while PPG Industries, Inc. (PPG) declined by 1.25%.

In consumer stocks, Target Corporation (TGT) decreased by 0.60%, Dollar General Corporation (DG) fell 1.05%, and Keurig Dr Pepper Inc. (KDP) fell 1.63%. Sysco Corporation (SYY) and The Kroger Co. (KR) shed 1.24% and 1.34%, respectively.

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Top Gainers

Top performers on S&P 500 included Moderna Inc (4.79%), ETSY Inc (3.23%), ServiceNow Inc (2.77%), Cabot Oil & Gas Corp (2.65%). On NASDAQ, top performers were Innate Pharma SA (47.13%), Vera Therapeutics Inc (32.72%), MongoDB Inc (26.33%), Draganfly Inc (24.10%). On Dow Jones,Salesforce.Com Inc (1.11%), Home Depot Inc (0.79%), Walmart Inc (0.46%), Apple Inc (0.42%) were the leaders.

Top Losers

Top laggards on S&P 500 included Carnival Corp (-4.41%), Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (-4.22%), PVH Corp (-3.81%), Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (-3.38%). On NASDAQ, Forte Biosciences Inc (-82.30%), Sphere 3D Corp (-32.34%), AgileThought Inc (-31.92%), Clearsign Technologies Corp (-26.91%). On Dow Jones, American Express Co (-1.70%), Boeing Co (-1.20%), Honeywell International Inc (-1.13%), Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (-0.95%) were the laggards.

Volume Movers

Top volume movers were Apple Inc (14.04M), Bank of America Corp (8.64M), NVIDIA Corp (6.29M), AT&T Inc (6.04M), Vinco Ventures Inc (14.07M), Sphere 3D Corp (11.64M), Meta Materials Inc (10.48M), Katapult Holdings Inc (8.73M), Digital Turbine Inc (8.66M), Cellect Biotechnology Ltd (8.49M).

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Futures & Commodities

Gold futures were up 1.02% to US$1,829.95 per ounce. Silver increased by 3.70% to US$24.802 per ounce, while copper rose 0.74% to US$4.3360.

Brent oil futures decreased by 0.70% to US$72.52 per barrel and WTI crude was down 1.13% to US$69.20.

Bond Market

The 30-year Treasury bond yields was up 2.05% to 1.946, while the 10-year bond yields rose 2.45% to 1.326.

US Dollar Futures Index decreased by 0.10% to US$92.138.