US stocks jumped and were set for a comeback on Friday as investors digested a big miss in the monthly jobs report and welcomed Amazon (AMZN) and Intel (INTC) earnings.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) surged 1.2%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose about 1%, both coming off a steep sell-off fueled by worries about Big Tech’s artificial intelligence spending. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) added roughly 1.1%.
Markets took in their stride the disappointing headline numbers in the all-important jobs report. The US economy added just 12,000 jobs in October, significantly missing expectations. The government said those numbers were weighed down by recent hurricanes and strike activity, most prominently at Boeing.
The report is the last major economic data before the Federal Reserve’s next policy decision on Nov. 7. Market expectations for that meeting moved little in its wake, with traders pricing in about 98% odds of a quarter-point rate cut at the Fed meeting next week, per CME FedWatch.
Meanwhile, upbeat earnings from Amazon helped dissipate the gloom around Big Tech’s prospects that drove Thursday’s slump in stocks. Its shares jumped over 6% in morning trading after CEO Andy Jassy said its cloud unit’s AI business was seeing triple-digit revenue growth.
Morale also got a lift from Intel’s (INTC) earnings beat and outlook, which revived hopes for the chipmaker’s turnaround and boosted the stock. But Apple (AAPL) shares slipped as its results and outlook left Wall Street wanting more.
Elsewhere in corporates, Boeing (BA) shares tipped higher after union leaders backed its latest offer to end a significant factory workers’ strike. The sweetened deal would lift wages by 38%.
Meanwhile, oil prices were up over 1%, pulling back from earlier higher gains after a report that Iran is planning a strike on Israel via militias that it backs in Iraq. Brent (BZ=F) crude futures traded below $74 a barrel after briefly nudging $75, while West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) futures were not far off the $70 level.
