Mid-Morning Market Update: Markets Open Lower; U.S. Economy Adds 678,000 Jobs

U.S. stocks opened on a downbeat note this morning following the release of weekly jobless claims data.

Following the market opening Friday, the Dow traded down 1.29% to 33,360.18 while the NASDAQ fell 1.35% to 13,354.95. The S&P also fell, dropping, 1.30% to 4,306.68.

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Leading and Lagging Sectors

Energy shares climbed by 1.2% on Friday. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included Indonesia Energy Corporation Limited INDO, up 32% and OXY up 7%.

In trading on Friday, financials shares fell by 2.4%.

Top Headline

The U.S. economy added 678,000 jobs in February, adding the most in seven months. However, analysts were expecting a reading of 400,000. The unemployment rate slipped to 3.8% in February from 4% in the prior month.

Equities Trading UP

Indonesia Energy Corporation Limited INDO shares shot up 47% to $29.75 after jumping 39% on Thursday.

Shares of Sweetgreen, Inc. SG got a boost, shooting 19% to $25.35 after the company reported better-than-expected Q4 sales results and issued FY22 sales guidance above analyst estimates.

Sidus Space, Inc. SIDU shares were also up, gaining 14% to $5.12. Sidus Space reported a strategic partnership with Aitech Systems to support LizzeSat Constellation.

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Equities Trading DOWN

Cerberus Cyber Sentinel Corporation CISO shares tumbled 21% to $4.8050 after gaining 24% on Thursday.

Shares of Ocugen, Inc. OCGN were down 21% to $2.5950 after the company announced the FDA declined to issue an EUA for COVAXIN for active immunization to prevent COVID-19 caused by SARS-CoV-2 in individuals 2 to 18 years of age.

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. SWBI was down, falling 18% to $14.61 after the company reported worse-than-expected Q3 adjusted EPS and sales results.

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Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded up 5.2% to $113.36, while gold traded up 0.9% to $1,953.60.

Silver traded up 1.3% Friday to $25.55 while copper rose 2.1% to $4.8835.

Euro zone

European shares were lower today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 fell 2.9%, London’s FTSE 100 fell 3.4%, while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index fell 3%. The German DAX dropped 3.6%, French CAC 40 dipped 3.5% and Italy’s FTSE MIB Index fell 4.8%.

The IHS Markit Italy construction PMI rose to a new series high of 68.5 in February, while German construction PMI rose to 54.9 in February. The IHS Markit French construction PMI slipped to 50 in February from 52 in the prior month, while industrial production increased 1.6% from a month ago in January.

Economics

The U.S. economy added 678,000 jobs in February, adding the most in seven months. However, analysts were expecting a reading of 400,000. The unemployment rate slipped to 3.8% in February from 4% in the prior month.

The Baker Hughes North American rig count report for the latest week will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET.

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Check out the full economic calendar here

COVID-19 Update

The U.S. has the highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths in the world, reporting a total of 80,843,570 cases with around 981,720 deaths. India confirmed a total of at least 42,951,550 cases and 514,620 deaths, while Brazil reported over 28,906,210 COVID-19 cases with 650,640 deaths. In total, there were at least 442,827,790 cases of COVID-19 worldwide with more than 6,004,220 deaths.