Enter your details to join our mobile app waitlist and receive early access to the Bell Direct App.
Favourable jobs data out in the US boosted investor sentiment on Friday to close out a winning week on Wall Street. The Dow Jones added 0.3% on Friday while the S&P500 rose 0.18% and the Nasdaq fell 0.02%. For the week though the Dow and Nasdaq each added 1.4% and 3.3% respectively while the S&P500 rose 2.5%.
Non-farm payrolls data out in the US on Friday showed the unemployment rate ticked higher to 3.8% in August, well above economists’ expectations of a hold at 3.5%. The rise in unemployment provides further signal that the Fed’s aggressive interest rate hikes are proving effective in cooling the tight labour market.
Following recent favourable data being released, the market has factored in a 93% chance the fed will hold interest rates at the next meeting, according to CNBC.
Dell Technologies soared 21% on Friday after reporting stronger-than-expected earnings in the latest quarterly results update.
Over in Europe, it was a mixed session on Friday as key US data and a lag in automaker stocks weighed on investor sentiment in the region. Auto stocks fell 2.6% on Friday after a survey out of Germany showed a deterioration in sentiment among automakers with almost half saying lack of orders is impeding production. The STOXX600 closed flat, Germany’s DAX fell 0.7%, the French CAC lost 0.27%, and in the UK, the FTSE100 rose 0.34%.
Locally, the ASX200 fell 0.37% on Friday, weighed down by the healthcare sector falling 1.42% while utilities stocks lost just shy of 1%. Qantas shares have been heavily sold off in recent sessions as the national carrier is facing a record corporate penalty of $600m from the consumer watchdog for allegations that Qantas was selling tickets for around 8000 allegedly already cancelled flights in May and June 2022. This comes alongside the airline facing scrutiny for making it difficult for customers to access and use flight credits, of $570m in total value, for flights cancelled during the COVID-19 period.
What to watch today:
Trading Ideas: