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US stocks were mixed on Friday, with the Dow Jones closing at a record high while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq fell slightly.
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The three major averages put together a three-week winning streak as investors celebrate a resilient economy and cooling inflation.
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Investors await key employment data next week, including the September employment report due out Friday morning.
US stocks were mixed on Friday, with the Dow Jones closing at a new all-time high while the Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 traded lower.
Despite mixed trading on Friday, all three major averages posted a three-week winning streak as investors continue to lift stocks on the back of a resilient economy, Federal Reserve interest rate cuts and cooling inflation. .
Investors got further evidence of cooling inflation with the release of the PCE index on Friday, which is considered the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation.
The price index for personal consumption expenditures increased 0.1% in August compared to July, in line with economists’ estimates. Year over year, the PCE index rose 2.2%, slightly below economists’ estimates of 2.3%.
“The Federal Reserve feels it has won the battle against inflation and its primary goal is to ensure the labor market remains stable,” said Bellwether Wealth Chief Investment Officer Clark Bellin.
Now that the battle against inflation may be over, the main focus of investors and the Federal Reserve has been on the labor market. That’s why next week is so important.
On Tuesday, investors will receive the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, followed by the ADP employment report on Wednesday and initial jobless claims on Thursday.
But the main event will be next Friday, when the September jobs report is released. Economists estimate that about 145,000 jobs will be added to the economy in September.
According to José Torres, senior economist at Interactive Brokers, the jobs report could have a big impact on the broader market.
“A sizable miss could certainly lead to a change in the markets’ narrative about an upcoming slowdown, but a strong gain could push rate cuts further up the curve. The ideal scenario for bullish investors is a figure near to the projections, as not to disturb the current monetary policy by relaxing expectations,” Torres said on Friday.
Here is where the US indices were at the 4:00 pm close on Friday:
This is what happened today:
In commodities, bonds and cryptocurrencies:
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West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 1.02% to $68.36 a barrel. Brent crude oil, the international benchmark, rose 0.68% to $72.09 a barrel.
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Gold fell 0.85% to $2,672.00 an ounce.
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The 10-year Treasury yield fell 4 basis points to 3.756%.
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Bitcoin rose 0.86% to $65,741.
Read the original article on Business Insider