TORONTO – The Toronto Stock Exchange and major U.S. markets were down Friday as investors digested a disappointing jobs report in the United States.
The report wasn’t weak enough to derail a possible interest rate hike from the U.S. Federal Reserve this month, some said, a prospect that could dampen growth and hurt the world economy, according to experts.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 116 points at 13,480.92, after climbing 51.16 points on Thursday.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average dropped a sharp 235.4 points at 16,139.16, while the S&P 500 index fell 24.73 points to 1,926.91. The Nasdaq declined 37.23 to 4,696.58.
MORE: Complete coverage or recent stock market turmoil
The loonie traded at 75.57 cents US, down 0.22 of a U.S. cent from Thursday’s close.
On the commodity markets, the December gold contract rose $8.70 to US$1,125.60 an ounce, the October crude contract was down 50 cents at US$46.25 a barrel and the October contract for natural gas was down three cents at US$2.69. The agency said output of businesses decreased at a similar rate to the first quarter, while hours worked continued to increase.
MORE: As the U.S. economy gathers speed, many see interest rate hike this fall
Comments