US close: Stocks end session lower following non-farm payrolls data
Wall Street stocks closed lower on Friday, with a volatile week for markets continuing as market participants digested November's non-farm payrolls report.
At the close, the Dow Industrial Average was down 0.17% at 34,580.08, while the S&P 500 was 0.84% weaker at 4,538.43 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 1.92% softer at 15,085.47.
The Dow closed 59.71 points lower on Friday, taking a bite out of gains recorded in the previous session thanks to a positive performance from stocks tied closely to an economic reopening.
Friday's primary focus was the November jobs report, which revealed the US economy added fewer jobs than expected throughout November, indicating that hiring had already started to slow before the emergence of the Covid-19 omicron variant.
According to the Labor Department, non-farm payrolls increased just 210,000 month-on-month, well and truly short of estimates for a print of 573,000. However, the unemployment rate fell sharply to 4.2% from 4.6% and the labour force participation rate increased to 61.8% last month, its highest level since March 2020.
Also on the data front, the Institute of Supply Management non-manufacturing purchasing managers' index came in at 69.1 in November, up from 66.7 a month earlier to a fresh record high. According to the report, economic activity in the services sector grew in November for the 18th month in a row, with the Services PMI setting its fifth time record for 2021. Previous records were set in March, May and July.
Covid-19 concerns were also still in focus, with the omicron variant now being detected in five US states but symptoms, so far, were said to only be mild.
In the corporate space, shares in vaccine manufacturer Moderna closed 1.73% higher.
Dow Jones - Risers
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $46.53 4.28%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $149.88 1.78%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $118.84 1.66%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $137.51 1.51%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $159.38 1.46%
3M Co. (MMM) $172.59 1.37%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $51.42 1.36%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $53.54 0.89%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $449.32 0.74%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $202.44 0.63%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $323.01 -1.97%
Boeing Co. (BA) $198.49 -1.92%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $158.29 -1.81%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $382.90 -1.24%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $161.84 -1.17%
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $258.32 -1.10%
Visa Inc. (V) $196.32 -0.99%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $73.34 -0.74%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $149.19 -0.67%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $146.22 -0.67%
S&P 500 - Risers
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $46.53 4.28%
Cooper Cos Inc. (COO) $392.92 3.60%
Discovery Inc. Class A (DISCA) $23.99 3.18%
Stanley Black & Decker Inc. (SWK) $182.02 3.07%
CH Robinson Worldwide Inc (CHRW) $97.00 2.95%
Dollar General Corp (DG) $222.31 2.87%
Centerpoint Energy Inc. (CNP) $26.95 2.78%
Nucor Corp. (NUE) $110.53 2.73%
Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (TTWO) $165.78 2.73%
Eversource Energy (ES) $85.27 2.67%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Adobe Systems Inc. (ADBE) $616.53 -8.24%
Svb Financial Group (SIVB) $674.57 -5.28%
Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $10.83 -5.08%
American Airlines Group (AAL) $16.62 -4.59%
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NCLH) $18.29 -4.54%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $306.93 -4.46%
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) $144.01 -4.43%
Msci Inc. (MSCI) $604.11 -4.15%
HollyFrontier Corp (HFC) $32.17 -3.88%
Carnival Corp. (CCL) $17.20 -3.86%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $46.53 4.28%
Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (TTWO) $165.78 2.73%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $50.72 2.61%
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $125.27 2.19%
T-Mobile Us, Inc. (TMUS) $112.77 2.18%
PACCAR Inc. (PCAR) $85.67 2.04%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $137.04 1.64%
Mondelez International Inc. (MDLZ) $60.26 1.35%
Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $679.30 1.33%
Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $85.27 1.22%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Trip.com Group Limited (TCOM) $25.26 -12.20%
Adobe Systems Inc. (ADBE) $616.53 -8.24%
Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $137.39 -7.77%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $77.95 -7.71%
NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $100.05 -6.90%
Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $1,052.95 -6.75%
Tesla Inc (TSLA) $1,014.97 -6.42%
American Airlines Group (AAL) $16.62 -4.59%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $306.93 -4.46%
Cadence Design Systems Inc. (CDNS) $177.87 -3.68%