NEW YORK, Sept. 5 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks finished lower on Friday after a disappointing U.S. jobs report heightened concerns about slowing economic momentum.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 220.43 points, or 0.48 percent, to 45,400.86. The S&P 500 declined 20.58 points, or 0.32 percent, to 6,481.5. The Nasdaq Composite Index edged down 7.31 points, or 0.03 percent, to 21,700.39. All three major indexes had touched record intraday highs earlier in the session, with the S&P 500, Nasdaq and Dow advancing as much as 0.5 percent, 0.8 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively, before turning lower.
Six of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in negative territory, led by energy and financials, which fell 2.06 percent and 1.84 percent. Real estate and communication services outperformed, rising 0.98 percent and 0.55 percent, respectively.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the economy added only 22,000 jobs in August, well below the 75,000 projected by economists surveyed by Dow Jones. The unemployment rate rose to 4.3 percent, in line with expectations.
The weak labor market data bolstered expectations for the Federal Reserve to deliver at least a quarter-point interest rate cut at its meeting later this month, while traders also priced in the possibility of a half-point reduction, according to the FedWatch tool. In response to the report, U.S. President Donald Trump renewed his criticism of Fed Chair Jerome Powell on social media.
"The U.S. economy is dominated by consumer spending (70 percent of GDP). The consumer is already anxious about tariffs hiking prices, leading to squeezed spending power ... We look for 25bp rate cuts in September, October and December with a further 50bp of cuts in early 2026," said James Knightley, Chief International Economist at ING.
On the corporate front, Broadcom shares surged 9.41 percent after the chipmaker delivered stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings, fueled by robust demand for its artificial intelligence products. The company also revealed a new multi-billion U.S. dollar customer, widely reported to be OpenAI.
Tesla gained 3.64 percent after unveiling a new pay package for CEO Elon Musk, setting ambitious performance targets that could lift his total compensation to as much as 1 trillion dollars over the next decade. Other mega-cap technology names were mixed. Nvidia and Microsoft each lost more than 2.5 percent, while Amazon slipped 1.42 percent, and Apple finished slightly lower. Alphabet and Meta Platforms, meanwhile, closed in positive territory.
