The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed to a record closing high on Thursday after weaker-than-expected US employment data reduced concerns that the Federal Reserve may need to raise interest rates again, while losses across semiconductor stocks dragged the Nasdaq lower.
The Dow jumped 594.83 points, or 1.14%, to finish at 52,900.07. The S&P 500 ended virtually unchanged at 7,483.24, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 207.36 points, or 0.80%, to close at 25,832.67.
For the week, the Dow gained about 2%, extending its winning streak to four consecutive weeks, its longest since October 2024. The S&P 500 advanced 1.8% while the Nasdaq rose 2.1%.
Investor sentiment was buoyed after the latest nonfarm payrolls report showed the US economy added just 57,000 jobs in June, well below economists’ expectations of 110,000. The unemployment rate stood at 4.2%, slightly better than forecasts of 4.3%.
The softer labour market data prompted investors to scale back expectations of another Federal Reserve rate increase. According to CME FedWatch, the probability of a September rate hike eased to 55% from 64.1% before the report.
“The jobs report doesn’t mean the fear of inflation is over,” said Adam Sarhan, chief executive of 50 Park Investments in New York.
“It just takes the pressure off the Fed to raise rates in the short term.”
The report came after recent concerns that rising oil prices following the Iran conflict could reignite inflationary pressures.
Apple provided strong support for the broader market, with its shares climbing 4.8% after Nikkei Asia reported the technology giant plans to introduce five new iPhone models.
Technology shares, however, remained under pressure as semiconductor stocks extended their recent sell-off. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index tumbled 5.4% for a second straight day of sharp losses.
Nvidia fell 1.4%, while SanDisk slumped 14.1%.
Bruce Zaro, managing director at Granite Wealth Management, said investors were likely locking in profits after the semiconductor sector’s exceptional rally this year, noting the index is still up about 78% year to date.
Tesla also ended sharply lower, dropping 7.5% despite reporting second-quarter vehicle deliveries that exceeded market expectations. The stock had rallied strongly ahead of the results.
Elsewhere, Bending Spoons slid 11.3%, giving back some of the gains from the previous session after the Vimeo owner surged 40% on its Nasdaq debut.
Market breadth remained positive on the New York Stock Exchange, where advancing stocks outnumbered decliners by 1.42-to-1. Trading volume reached 19.92 billion shares, below the 20-day average of 23.34 billion shares.
US markets will be closed on Friday for the Independence Day public holiday.
