Friends
Well, it appears we had a goldilocks type of jobs report this morning. Oh, it disappointed on some levels, as the 151,000 new jobs created was less than the 180,000 or so expected, and the 0.1% increase in average hourly earnings was somewhat anemic, but market participants found the number quite to their liking. Why? You know, the number was weak enough to give the Fed pause with regards to a rate hike in September, but the number was not so weak as to cause alarm that something has drastically changed. Traders saw a green light and stocks bolted higher right from the opening bell. After a hawkish comment from a Fed Governor stocks gave back some of the gains, but for the day the bulls were able to hold on to much of the original up move.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 72 points to finish the day at 18,491. The S&P 500 was up 9 points to close at 2179. Gold was up $10 to trade at $1,327 per ounce, while oil was up $1.12 to trade at $44.28 per barrel WTI.
Remember, the Fed is data dependent so nothing is clear yet with regards to a rate hike in September, but with today’s jobs number the likelihood of a hike did diminish. It might be easier for the Fed to just wait until after the election and if the data supports it, go ahead and hike in December. I think that is what the market was saying today, but there is still data to peruse before the September meeting so we won’t make any declarations just yet.
Remember, Monday is a holiday, so we’ll talk to you next Tuesday. Have a great Labor Day Weekend everyone.
