Stocks steadily advanced over the holiday week thanks to strength in mega-cap tech issues and encouraging jobs data.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 1.95 percent, while the Nasdaq Composite Index added 3.50 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up a modest 0.66 percent. The MSCI EAFE Index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, rose 2.30 percent for the week through Thursday’s close.1
Nasdaq, S&P Extend Runs
ADP’s employment report on Wednesday showed private-sector employers added 150,000 jobs in June—slightly slower than May’s pace—adding to investor hopes that a slowing economy may prompt the Fed to adjust short-term rates as early as September. The Nasdaq and the S&P hit their 23rd and 33rd record closes, respectively, for the year.2
Friday morning’s jobs report from the Labor Department showed 206,000 jobs added last month, which also suggested a strong-but-cooling economy. News of slower job growth, slowing wage growth, and a slight uptick in unemployment helped drive down Treasury yields, and stocks finished the short week with a strong rally. The Nasdaq and S&P both closed at all-time highs on Friday.3
Still Catching Up?
Driving much of the job growth in last week’s reports was a post-pandemic catchup effect: sectors such as healthcare and leisure/hospitality showed they are still recovering.4
The private-sector jobs data and the Labor Department report painted a similar picture of an economy creating jobs but at a slower rate than in the past.5,6
Footnotes And Sources
- The Wall Street Journal, July 5, 2024
- The Wall Street Journal, July 3, 2024
- The Wall Street Journal, July 5, 2024
- The Wall Street Journal, July 5, 2024
- The Wall Street Journal, July 5, 2024
- Marketwatch.com, July 5, 2024
