US stocks slip on weak jobs data

The blue-chip S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average declined from the previous close, and the tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite closed flat on Wednesday, August 4, after weak jobs data failed to enthuse the investors in a lacklustre session marked by thin trading volumes.

The S&P 500 was down 0.46% to 4,402.66. The Dow Jones fell by 0.92% to 34792.67. The NASDAQ Composite rose 0.13% to 14,780.53, and the small-cap Russell 2000 was down 1.23% to 2,196.32.

According to a survey, the US economy added far fewer jobs in July than most economists expected. The data showed that 330,000 new jobs were added in the month, almost half the number previously anticipated, the Wall Street Journal reported citing a research institute. The report comes ahead of the labor department's July employment data this week.

On Wednesday, Richard Clarida, the Vice-Chairman of the Federal Reserve, favored an early rollback of the covid-era monetary stimuli because of rising inflation. The policy was also aimed at creating more jobs, but it has produced mixed results so far.

Nine of the 11 critical segments of the S&P 500 saw losses. Energy and industrial stocks were the biggest losers, while communication and technology stocks saw modest gains.

General Motors Company (GM) on Wednesday reported a net income of US$1.8 billion in the second quarter against a loss of US$0.8 billion in the year-ago quarter. In addition, it raised its full-year guidance to between US$11.5 billion and US$13.5 billion, more than its previous prediction of US$10 billion to US$11 billion. However, the GM declined 8.91% at the close.

Robinhood Inc. (HOOD) stock surged 50.41% from the previous close. Robinhood made its debut in Nasdaq on July 29. The ARK Fintech Innovation ETF (AFKF) had purchased 89,622 Robinhood shares for around US$4.2 billion on Tuesday. The ARK ETF (ARFK) stock rose by 1.82% on Wednesday.

Shares of BioNTech jumped more than 20% amid anticipation of FDA approval for its new covid vaccine developed in collaboration with Pfizer Inc by early September.

Meanwhile, Lyft Inc. (LYFT) shares declined by 9% after the ride-hailing firm reported its second-quarter report. Its revenue jumped 125% YoY to US$765 million, while its net loss was US$251.9 million.

Also Read: Which are the popular industrial stocks to explore in August?

In the technology sector, ASML Holdings NV (ASML) gained 2.37%, Adobe Inc. (ADBE) rose by 0.77%, and Salesforce.com Inc. (CRM) gained 1.09%. In addition, Shopify Inc. (SHOP) and NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) advanced 2.25% and 2.26%, respectively. On the other hand, Sony Group Corporation (SONY) ticked down 1.06%.

In the energy sector, Exxon Mobil Corporation (XOM) declined by 2.09%, Chevron Corporation (CVX) dropped 2.17%, and Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDS-A) declined by 2.01%. Enbridge Inc. (ENB) and ConocoPhillips (COP) ticked down 0.79% and 2.58%, respectively.

In the industrial sector, BHP Group (BBL) fell 0.87%, Rio Tinto Group (RIO) declined 0.90%, and Freeport-McMoran Inc. (FCX) dropped 2.14%. Newmont Corporation (NEM) and Dow Inc. (DOW) fell 1.11% and 1.72%.

In the crypto world, Coinbase Global Inc. (COIN) increased by 4.55%, while Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) rose 4.15% and 8.76%, respectively.

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Also Read: Which are the popular industrial stocks to explore in August?

Top Gainers

Top performers on S&P 500 included Paycom Software Inc (10.70%), DaVita Inc (8.63%), Moderna Inc (8.42%), Under Armour Inc (6.71%). On NASDAQ, top performers were BeyondSpring Inc (176.01%), Robinhood Markets Inc (50.41%), eXp World Holdings Inc (35.95%), Bit Digital Inc (30.70%). On Dow Jones, Salesforce.Com Inc (1.26%), Nike Inc (0.40%), UnitedHealth Group Inc (-0.09%), Visa Inc (-0.18%) were the leaders.

Top Losers

Top laggards on S&P 500 included General Motors Co (-8.92%), Lumen Technologies Inc (-8.86%), Unum Group (-8.84%), Gap Inc (-8.01%). On NASDAQ, Zymergen Inc (-76.31%), Live Ventures Inc (-47.41%), China XD Plastics Company Ltd (-38.72%), Moxian Inc (-35.64%). On Dow Jones, Amgen Inc (-6.46%), Chevron Corp (-2.24%), Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (-2.00%), Dow Inc (-1.99%) were the laggards.

Volume Movers

Top volume movers were Advanced Micro Devices Inc (35.47M), Ford Motor Co (12.55M), Apple Inc (12.53M), Bank of America Corp (11.03M), General Motors Co (7.95M), Pfizer Inc (7.94M), Robinhood Markets Inc (41.95M), Tellurian Inc (14.73M), BeyondSpring Inc (12.48M), Zynga Inc (8.65M).

Also Read: Which are the six fastest-growing US small-cap stocks?

Futures & Commodities

Gold futures were up 0.01% to US$1,814.30 per ounce. Silver decreased by 0.63% to US$25.422 per ounce, while copper fell 1.22% to US$4.3327.

Brent oil futures decreased by 3.09% to US$70.17 per barrel and WTI crude was down 3.59% to US$68.03.

Bond Market

The 30-year Treasury bond yields was down 0.72% to 1.838, while the 10-year bond yields rose 0.68% to 1.182.

US Dollar Futures Index increased by 0.20% to US$92.273.