The Dow Jones Industrials regained 76.65 points to 32,803.47. Even with Friday’s gains, however, it fell on the week.
The S&P 500 fell 6.75 points to 4,145.19.
The NASDAQ Composite dropped 63.02 points to 12,657.56. Still, both the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ ended the first week of August higher.
Losses were offset by bank stocks, which rose on hopes that interest rate hikes will continue at a solid clip. Energy stocks also gained, but technology companies slumped.
The labour market added 528,000 jobs in July, easily beating a Dow Jones estimate of a 258,000 increase. The unemployment rate ticked down to 3.5%, below the 3.6% estimate.
Wage growth also ticked up more than estimated, up 0.5% for the month and 5.2% higher than a year ago, signaling that high inflation is likely still a problem.
Major averages posted their best month since 2020 in July on the hope the Fed would slow the pace of its hikes. The S&P 500 added 9.1% last month. Friday’s losses pushed the index into the red for this week.
Treasury prices retreated, raising yields to 2.82% from Thursday’s 2.67%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices fell 13 cents to $88.41 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices demurred $16.50 to $1,790.40 U.S. an ounce.
Stocks Notch Weekly Gains on Jobs Report