No Lift.
Robert R. Fragnito
Chief Operating Officer | Financial Advisor | Portfolio Manager at MCF Capital Management, LLC
U.S. stocks are trading significantly lower midsession on Friday after data showed the U.S. economy added fewer jobs than expected.
Stocks opened mixed on Friday morning after the U.S. Labor Department reported that the U.S. added 142,000 jobs in August, lower than the estimated 164,000 but up from a downwardly revised figure of 89,000 in July.
The Labor Department also reported that the unemployment rate fell to 4.2% in August from 4.3% last month.
U.S. Treasury yields also fell in reaction to the jobs report as traders weighed the future path of interest rate policy.
Fed funds futures markets oscillated between possible probabilities on how the Federal Reserve would proceed with rate cuts. Traders initially bet that the central bank would cut rates by 50 basis points in September, then back to 25 basis points, with a significant cut in November.
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Looking Ahead
Markets have witnessed a volatile week as investors head into a seasonally tough period. They are weighing economic growth concerns and the future path of monetary policy, and we expect these considerations to be the driving force behind financial markets in the near term.
Overall, the U.S. economy is still in very good shape, but the justification for the Fed starting a rate-cutting cycle is appropriate in light of a few areas of the economy weakening. Unfortunately, markets appear hyper-sensitive to economic data and will now focus on how deep rate cuts will be.
We expect market volatility to continue while still maintaining a positive view of financial markets.
Stay Tuned!
OUR FIRM
MCF Capital Management, LLC is an independent, family-run, financial advisory firm that manages investment portfolios for individuals and businesses through Quantitative Market Data Analysis.
THIS ARTICLE IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT INVESTMENT ADVICE.
📚 SOURCES: LSEG Workspace, Dow Jones NewsPlus, MarketWatch, Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, FinancialJuice, Investing .com, CNBC, Reuters, Wells Fargo Investment Institute, TradingView, Zacks