Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The stock market closed a downbeat week with gains. The S&P 500 logged a 0.6% gain, the Dow Jones Industrial Average settled 0.5% higher, and the Nasdaq Composite jumped 0.7%.

The buying interest reflected buy-the-dip action after the sharp declines this week. There was also likely some technical factors in play after the S&P 500 dropped below its 200-day moving average (5,733) again today. 

Strength in the semiconductor space was also a big help to the broader equity market. Broadcom (AVGO 194.96, +15.51, +8.6%) fueled buying in the space after reporting strong results and guidance. The PHLX Semiconductor Index (SOX) logged a 3.2% gain.

This morning's release of the February Employment Situation report wasn't great, but didn't deter buyers, either. Nonfarm payroll growth was a bit below estimates (151,000; Briefing.com consensus 159,000) and there was a sharp increase in the U6 unemployment rate (to 8.0% from 7.5%) to a level not seen since late 2021.

Market participants were also digesting Fed Chairman Powell's comments during a Q&A session that he was pleasantly surprised by improvements in productivity, which will result in higher potential output, and repeated that there is no rush to adjust policy at this time.

Also, President Trump said that reciprocal tariffs, which were slated to go into effect on April 2, could be implemented today.

• Dow Jones Industrial Average: -2.4% YTD
• S&P 500: -3.1% YTD
• S&P Midcap 400: -3.5% YTD
• Nasdaq Composite: -3.5%
• Russell 2000: -4.1% YTD

Reviewing today's economic data:

• February Nonfarm Payrolls 151K (Briefing.com consensus 159K); Prior was revised to 125K from 143K, February Nonfarm Private Payrolls 140K (Briefing.com consensus 145K); Prior was revised to 80K from 111K, February Avg. Hourly Earnings 0.3% (Briefing.com consensus 0.3%); Prior was revised to 0.4% from 0.5%, February Unemployment Rate 4.1% (Briefing.com consensus 4.0%); Prior 4.0%, February Average Workweek 34.1 (Briefing.com consensus 34.2); Prior 34.1
  • The key takeaway from the report is that it was no better than just okay. It won't be enough to silence the growth concerns that have echoed in recent weeks through other data releases.

There is no US economic data of note Monday.