In response to renewed concerns about the prospects for interest rates after the release of much hotter than anticipated jobs statistics, traders decided to book profits as the US stock market ended its session substantially lower on Friday, February 3, 2023. The markets were also negatively affected by the earnings reports from Apple, Amazon, and Alphabet, the parent company of Google.
At the close of trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average index declined 127.93 points, or 0.38%, to 33,926.01. The S&P500 index was down 43.28 points, or 1.04%, to 4,136.48.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index decreased by 193.86 points, or 1.59%, to 12,006.95.
Along with the S&P500 Index, all 11 sectors had a decline. Consumer discretionary had the worst performance, losing 3.11%, and was followed by the communication services, utilities, and real estate sectors.
ECONOMIC NEWS: The Labor Department’s closely watched monthly jobs report said non-farm payroll employment soared by 517,000 jobs in January after surging by an upwardly revised 260,000 jobs in December. The report also said the unemployment rate edged down to 3.4% in January from 3.5% in December. The stronger-than-expected labor market renewed concerns that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates higher than currently anticipated.
The report from the Institute for Supply Management showed services PMI jumped to 55.2 in January from a revised 49.2 in December, with a reading above 50 indicating growth.
