Rally seems to run out of steam
Investors made a small move back to safer assets Friday after the government's November jobs report showed continued hiring but weak wage growth.
Stock indexes finished little changed after real estate and household-goods companies rose, but banks, which have soared since the presidential election, fell.
Most stocks finished higher, and the biggest gains went to companies that pay big dividends. Investors bought bonds too.
The dollar weakened as investors expected less inf lation. Thanks to a loss from Goldman Sachs, which closed at a nine-year high Thursday, the Dow Jones industrial average slipped after closing at a record high the day before.
The jobs report called into question some of investors’ hopes about the economy, and investors reversed some of the moves they've made since the presidential election Nov. 8.
U.S. stocks’ weak finish appeared to mark an end, at least for now, of the postelection rally. The Standard & Poor’s 500 and Nasdaq fell this week after a three-week rally took them to record highs. The Dow finished little changed.
Bond prices, which have been falling sharply since the election, rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.30% from 2.45%.
Lower bond yields pushed investors to buy utility and real estate firms and makers of consumer goods, which are often compared to bonds because of their big dividend payments. When bond yields fall, those stocks become more appealing to investors seeking income. General Growth Properties rose 2.5% to $25.46.
The drop in bond yields also affected banks because yields are linked to longterm interest rates. Lower interest rates mean banks can't make as much money from lending. Goldman Sachs fell 1.4% to $223.36 and Citigroup slid 2.2% to $56.02.
Benchmark U.S. crude rose 1.2% to $51.68 a barrel. Brent crude ticked up 1% to $54.46 a barrel. The price of oil surged 12% this week after OPEC countries agreed to trim oil production. That was the biggest weekly rise in prices since February 2011.
The dollar fell to 113.67 yen. The euro rose to $1.0660 from $1.0645.
Starbucks slid 2.2% to $57.21 after the coffee chain said Howard Schultz will step down as chief executive.
Workday shares tumbled 12.5% to $71.40 after the Pleasanton, Calif., human resources software firm gave a weak forecast. CEO Aneel Bhusri said some customers have delayed completing large deals, partly because of “global uncertainties.”
Ambarella sank 11.3% to $54.47 after the Santa Clara, Calif., video-compression chipmaker’s sales forecast fell short of expectations.
Gold rose $8.40 to $1,177.80 an ounce. Silver jumped 33 cents, to $16.83 an ounce. Copper fell 2 cents, to $2.63 a pound.
Wholesale gasoline rose 1 cent to $1.56 a gallon. Heating oil rose 1 cent, to $1.66 a gallon. Natural gas fell 7 cents, to $3.44 per 1,000 cubic feet.