New York (AFP) – Wall Street stocks moved sideways Wednesday following solid US jobs data that boosted sentiment about the economy but dented prospects for imminent Federal Reserve interest rate cuts. The US economy added 130,000 jobs last month, the Department of Labor said, more than double the amount expected by analysts. Meanwhile, the jobless rate inched lower to 4.3 percent. The report comes on the heels of recent data that has raised questions about US economic health.
“There were some investors concerned after yesterday’s retail sales that this report would potentially add to some growth worries,” said Angelo Kourkafas of Edward Jones. “But I think the solid numbers really alleviated some of these fears.” But the report also means “there is less urgency from the Fed to cut interest rates,” Kourkafas said. “This could support the rotation that is happening with the old economy stocks benefiting while we still see some of the lingering disruption worries on the technology space.”
The S&P 500 finished flat while both the Dow and Nasdaq ended marginally lower after choppy sessions. In Europe, London’s FTSE 100 gained more than one percent and set a new record high thanks to buoyant commodity prices. Paris and Frankfurt both ended lower. Asia’s main stock markets closed higher before the US jobs report.
XTB research director Kathleen Brooks noted that the jobs data still raised concerns thanks to an annual revision that was also given Wednesday — which showed a benchmark reduction of 862,000 positions. “The revisions suggest there was virtually no jobs growth in the US last year,” she said.
In Europe on Wednesday, shares in Heineken climbed 4.2 percent after the Dutch brewer said it would axe 6,000 jobs amid falling beer shipments. TotalEnergies rose 3.1 percent as the French energy giant announced fresh share buybacks, helping offset news of a 17 percent drop in annual net profit. Siemens Energy shares jumped 8.4 percent on ballooning profits as AI boosts demand for electricity.
On the downside, Dassault Systemes tumbled 20 percent after the French software group posted lower sales than expected. Among US companies, Mattel plunged 25 percent after reporting disappointing results. CEO Ynon Kreiz pointed to disappointing demand in December and said the toymaker’s 2026 investments would crimp profits this year but “accelerate growth in top and bottom lines in 2027 and beyond.”
**Key figures at around 2115 GMT:**
New York – Dow: DOWN 0.1 percent at 50,121.40 (close)
New York – S&P 500: FLAT at 6,941.47 (close)
New York – Nasdaq Composite: DOWN 0.2 percent at 23,066.47 (close)
London – FTSE 100: UP 1.1 percent at 10,472.11 (close)
Paris – CAC 40: DOWN 0.2 percent at 8,313.24 (close)
Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.5 percent at 24,856.15 (close)
Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.3 percent at 27,266.38 (close)
Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.1 percent at 4,131.98 (close)
Tokyo – Nikkei 225: Closed for a holiday
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1874 from $1.1895 on Tuesday
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3628 from $1.3643
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 153.14 yen from 154.39 yen
Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.13 pence from 87.19 pence
Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.9 percent at $69.40 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.1 percent at $64.63 per barrel
burs-jmb/sla
© 2024 AFP
