The Dow Jones Industrial Average was under modest selling pressure early Friday on news that the economy created 209,000 jobs in June, mostly in line with the 213,000 consensus estimate. As expected, the unemployment rate dipped to 3.6%. But average hourly earnings increased 4.4%, a little above the 4.2% forecast.
The new data comes on the heels of Thursday's ADP Employment Report, which showed private payrolls up 497,000 in June. That was more than double the 235,000 expected. The 10-year Treasury yield, up 22 basis points so far this week headed into Friday, was up 3 basis points to 4.07% ahead of the jobs data. About one hour into the session, the yield was trading around 4.05%.
According to CME FedWatch, federal funds futures traders think there's a 95% chance that the Fed will hike rates by another 25 basis points later this month to a range of 5.25% to 5.5%.
JPMorgan Chase was an early gainer in the Dow Jones index, helped by positive comments from Wolfe Research, which raised JPM's rating to outperform from peer perform ahead of next week's earnings report. JPMorgan reports earnings Friday, along with other financials like Wells Fargo, Citigroup and BlackRock.
Other early gainers in the Dow Jones included Caterpillar, 3M and Chevron.
Outside The Dow Jones
The S&P 500 edged higher amid a rising distribution day count. The benchmark index on Thursday registered its fifth higher-volume decline since June 7. But the index closed off lows and held support at its 10-day moving average.
Advancing stocks beat decliners on the NYSE by nearly 3-to-1.
First Solar was a top gainer in the S&P 500, rising 5%. The stock's 50-day moving average remains at a potential resistance level. Group peer Enphase Energy also outperformed, but the stock's 50-day line has been a resistance level since early June.
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Costco fell 1.5% after the company said sales in June increased 0.4% to $22.86 billion, but U.S. same-store sales fell 2.5%.
Biogen slumped 3% after the Food and Drug Administration, as expected, approved the company's Alzheimer's treatment. In early June, an FDA advisory panel unanimously recommended approval of the drug.
The Nasdaq composite edged higher, with winners beating losers by more than 3-to-1.
Datadog outperformed with a gain of around 1.5%, although the stock was near session lows. It's been holding gains well, trading sideways and in position for a breakout try over a 103.80 buy point. Fellow software stock Dynatrace also faded off highs after a strong start.
Alibaba soared 8% after China said a regulatory review of Ant Group will conclude with a fine of just under $1 billion. BABA stock gapped up around its 200-day moving average as it tries to break out of a downtrend.
Heavy volume rolled into EV maker Rivian again after Wedbush reiterated an outperform rating and lifted Rivian's price target to 30 from 25. Shares gapped up more than 13%.
Growth Stocks On The Move
Boeing was off highs in the Dow Jones after the stock tried to break out of a long consolidation last month. But it didn't take long for sellers to knock the stock down to its 50-day moving average. Shares are now above that line.
Inside the IBD 50, DraftKings jumped 5% after Oppenheimer maintained an outperform rating and lifted DKNG's price target to 36 from 30. DraftKings is a Leaderboard stock.
Early gainers in the MarketSmith Growth 250 included Opera, Tidewater, and Super Micro Computer.
Leaderboard stock Meta Platforms was mostly flat, two days after the company launched Threads, a competitor to Twitter. META continues to be a stock market leader, holding above its 10-day line after a lengthy run-up.
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