Stock rally undeterred by weak jobs report
NEW YORK — Bond yields sank yesterday to their lowest level this year, and the dollar’s value fell against rivals after the nation’s job growth slowed last month. But stock indexes chugged again to record heights, led by technology companies and dividend payers.
Yields fell immediately after the government said that employers added 138,000 jobs last month, which was short of economists’ expectations and a slowdown from April’s hiring. The yield on the 10-year Treasury dropped to 2.15 percent from 2.21 percent late Thursday and hit its lowest level since mid-November.
The government’s jobs report also said that hiring was weaker in March and April than earlier reported. The unemployment rate fell to 4.3 percent last month, its lowest level since 2001.
Stocks opened for trading an hour after the release of the jobs report, and they were higher for nearly the entire day. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 9.01 points, or 0.4 percent, to 2,439.07. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 62.11, or 0.3 percent, to 21,206.29, and the Nasdaq composite added 58.97, or 0.9 percent, to 6,305.80. All three indexes added to records set on Thursday.
Many economists say they don’t expect the latest jobs report to dissuade the Federal Reserve from raising interest rates again at its next policy meeting in two weeks. The job market and inflation remain strong enough, they say. The central bank has been trying to pull rates gradually off their record low following the Great Recession, and it has raised rates twice since December.
Technology stocks had the day’s biggest gains, with those in the S&P 500 jumping 1 percent. It is the latest move higher for the streaking sector, which is already up 21.3 percent for the year. That is by far the biggest gain among the 11 sectors that make up the S&P 500.