STOCKS HIT ALL-TIME HIGHS AFTER DYNAMITE JOBS REPORT: Here's what you need to know
All three major averages opened higher and moved a bit higher over the course of the day. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq both eclipsed their all-time highs, while the Dow fell short of that mark.
The increase, however, was still not enough to break the record streak of now 17 straight days without a move in the S&P 500 of 1% in either direction.
There's a whole lot to unpack from the day in markets and business news, but first, the scoreboard:
- Dow: 18,535.38 (+183.33, +1.00%)
- S&P 500: 2,181.85 (+17.60, +0.81%)
- Nasdaq: 5,220.10 (+53.85, +1.04%)
- WTI Crude oil: $41.88 (-0.05, -0.12%)
- 10-year Treasury yield: 1.582 (+0.079, +5.26%)
- The jobs report crushed expectations. The US economy added 255,000 jobs in July, well above the 180,000 projected by economists.
- Wage growth hit a post-recession high. Average hourly earnings jumped 2.6% year-over-year in July, matching the post-Great Recession high set in June.
- The labor force participation rate improved. The percentage of American adults in the labor force rose to 62.8%, a 0.1% increase from June.
- The jobs report proves America is running out of people to hire. The unemployment rate for people without a high school degree dropped by 1.2% from June to just 6.3%. This shows that American businesses are trying to find workers anywhere and that there is little slack left in the labor market.
- Bristol-Myers Squibb stock got rocked after a failed drug trial. Opdivo, a drug designed to treat cancer, failed clinical trials, the British drugmaker announced. in reaction to the news, the stock fell by just over 16%.
- The oil rig count rose for the sixth straight week. The Baker Hughes count jumped by seven to 381. Combined oil and gas rigs increased by one to 464.
ADDITIONALLY:
The debt market is going to get ugly.
The jobs report leaves out a huge part of the economy.
BLACK SWAN FUND: 'There's going to be chaos'
Here's what happens to the stock market during the Olympics
One analyst's epic Twitter rant reminds everyone what Wall Street research is really for